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AAPC CPC prep course (4 month) - student

Posted: Jul 30, 2012

Hi - Has anyone here taken the 4-month AAPC CPC Preparation course? How did you do on the CPC Exam?

AAPC CPC Course - CPC Testtaker

[ In Reply To ..]
Hi, I took an AAPC affiliated course, LS Coding with Lynn Schoeler, and passed the CPC exam on the first attempt. I had taken another coding course prior to enrolling in LS Coding and didn't feel prepared to take the test. I was quite pleased with Lynn's course.

CPC prep course - Curious one

[ In Reply To ..]
Do you mind sharing some specifics in regard to course fees, etc.? Is it doable if you have a full time "day job as an MT?" I also took a coding course but don't feel ready to take the exam. I'm trying for a part time outpatient coding job and perhaps if they know that I'm prepping for the CPC exam I might have a chance. Thanks.

Never mind! - Curious one

[ In Reply To ..]
I found the web site and reviewed the info, thanks.

Feeling ready to take the exam - Coder

[ In Reply To ..]
Few people ever feel ready to take a certificaion exam, especially in coding where there seems to be so much to know and you recognize that all of it was not specificaly addressed in your course.

My suggestion is that you simply TAKE the exam. In the case of AAPC exams, nothing is lost if you do not pass since you get one free retake with 12 months to take it. You will see what you need to work on. You will then know if you need to take their course.

Local chapters of the AAPC often offer weekend reviews before they administer the exam. I have taken them twice as a quick review before one exam or another. That often costs little. I recommend those reviews, but I do not recommend taking one course after another just because you do not know if you are "ready" or not.

I recommend this for AHIMA exams, as well. It might mean that you have to pay again for a retake, but that is a lot less expensive than taking a $2000 review course.

In my experience, employers are not more likely to hire someone who claim to be prepping for the exam. They know that some people "prep" forever-it can be a hollow intention. (I know several people who have "been prepping" for years.) They know that some people never do pass any exam, leaving the employer stuck with an uncredentialed coder. That damages the credibility of their compliance plan. Hence, their reluctance to get involved with noncredentialed individuals.

Are employers required to have a certain % of certified coders? - Just wondering

[ In Reply To ..]
I was wondering of there are any kinds of regulations that require employers to have a certain % of certified coders. It seems to me that otherwise hospitals might just hire the cheapest, no matter if they know what they are doing or not. That would cause major problems with insurance, Medicare, and Medicaid claims if the coding is done poorly.

Do you know how that works?

Percentage of certified coders - Curious One

[ In Reply To ..]
I think it's a Medicare/Medicaid requirement, and I don't know if it's a certain percentage, it might be everyone on staff.

No, not for providers of care - SM

[ In Reply To ..]
No, CMS does not require healthcare providers to have certified coders on staff. However, healthcare providers have 2 very good reasons to do so.

One is that certification provides assurance that the coder meets a certain level of competency. They passed a difficult test and keep up the credential via continuing education.

ethical standards

Second is that hiring certified coders helps an employer demonstrate an intent to be compliant with the rules and regulations of Medicare and Medicaid programs. It becomes an element of their compliance program. How do they know their staff is coding correctly and adhering to law? Well, they do so by hiring certified coders who have demonstrated expertise and who have agreed to uphold the ethics of the professional organization. They also conduct internal and external audits. In the event that coding errors are discovered by Medicare, the appearance of intentional or negligent wrongdoing is mitigated by this. The employer took reasonable steps to comply with requiremets.

That's interesting. I thought maybe hospitals had to - I see. Thanks!

[ In Reply To ..]
Thanks! I thought maybe the hospitals had to, but your explanation makes sense. They hire the credentialed coders because they want to. It makes sense that it would make their lives a lot easier, and especially during audits. It makes me think of how a company would have a CPA present if they were audited by IRS. A hospital would want a CCS to represent them during a coding audit if I understand you correctly.

That is basically it - A little more

[ In Reply To ..]
Having the work done by a CPC credntialed outpatient coder, perhaps with specialty certifications, enables an office to say "We want to do this correctly so we use credentialed individuals. We meet the highest expectations." They can be represented by a credentialed coder at an audit. If they need to be represented by a lawyer, the lawyer may hold coding credentials or have a credentialed coder on staff.

A hospital is very similar. They establish the intent to do the right thing by hiring CCS inpatient coders and CCS-P physician services coders, and CPCs and CPC-Hs. "We hire the best we can. If we make mistakes in spite of that, it is not for lack of trying." In a hospital setting, though, they will have internal oversight in terms of a compliance office staffed with more experienced credentialed coders, who may also be RHIAs, or RHIAs who code. When representation is required, they will use specialist RHIAs who may be JDs and/or MBAs, and who may also have coding credentials, or a team which has those credentials among them.

Companies that handle Medicare claims on the payer side are expected to have credentialed coders on staff. That came about after claims were denied by noncredentialed people and healthcare providers had a fit about it. "How dare you use people who can't even pass a credentialing test to tell my credentialed coders they are wrong! YOU are wrong but you don't even know it!" CMS told the companies that hey need to have at least one credentialed coder on staff. That is what the CPC-P is for . . . the Payer end. Not to be confused with the CCS-P, which is physician services of the type found in hospitals, a lot like the CPC-H.

Feeling ready to take exam - Curious One

[ In Reply To ..]
Well, you nailed that one, I'm a major procrastinator when it comes to doing this. The exam is offered at least twice a year where I live, I need to set a goal date and go for it. I wasn't aware that AAPC offered the weekend reviews, I will definitely look into that. Yes, I thought the review course was pretty pricey; it also covers a lot of things I really don't need. Thanks for the feedback.

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