medical coding training at home.
CPT is the abbreviation of the words Current Procedural Terminology and a CPT code is standard naming convention described and authorized by the American Medical Association to consistently classify and recognize medical procedures.
The standard is comprised of 5 alpha numeric characters that indicate an exact procedure performed by the doctors. Every year the AMA is responsible for updating the standards to and ensuring their validity.
Some CPT codes have modifiers available for use that will allow additional information to be added to the procedure in order to better explain the practice performed. This will allow for fewer errors in billing and fewer rejected claims during the submission to insurance.
The use of a standard will logically create fewer errors during the billing process reducing the cost and insecurity involved in patient claims management.
The actual act of CPT coding involves applying the correct code to a given procedure during the billing lifecycle of a patients hospital or doctor visit.
Without knowledge of the specific codes for each procedure many claims would be mislabeled and rejected by insurance companies as medically unnecessary, as an incorrect procedure, or for a variety of reasons.
How do you attain a knowledge of the CPT codes that?
CPT Coding courses are available from many major Universities as well as commuter campuses, and online colleges. Many local programs are targeted toward billing and coding certificates and may not be a targeted as you may be looking for. I would recommend doing some research about the topics which you will be studying before signing up for the program.
Some coding topics you should be interested in if you would like to achieve a "good" education are:
- CPT
- HCPCS
- ICD-9
- Medical Terminology & Abbreviations
- Anatomy & Physiology
- HIPAA compliance
- Insurance Compliance
- Physician Credentialing
- Data Entry
Although right now it is not a requirement to be certified as a medical coding specialist in order to work in a medical billing office or hospital I believe it soon will be. The regulation of the medical billing field is becoming tighter on a yearly basis and it would be a reasonable assumption to believe that in the coming years it will be a requirement for all CPT coders to be certified in their field.
The CPT coding profession can be rewarding in that it is a very stable field in which job security is generally high. You can expect as a CPT coder to be a salaried employee making between $22,000 and $40,000 a year with benefits such as health insurance and PTO, paid time off, depending on your level of training, number of certifications and years of experience in the field.
Positions for CPT coding are available in medical billing offices, hospitals, private practice physician's offices, at home opportunities are available as well.
