Medical Coders are highly skilled professionals. They play a vital role in the healthcare industry. They assign numeric or alphanumeric codes to identify medical treatment, services, or supplies provided to patients who received professional medical services.

A coder must be skilled at abstracting clinical notes and understand coding guidelines to capture the correct medical codes for the proper reimbursement. They work closely with providers in informing them of medical coding guidelines, documentation insufficiencies, and providing yearly updates—these are valuable assets for the medical practice.

Medical coding is an excellent career path, even for those who have never worked in the medical field or hold a degree. Achieving your medical coding certification is a secure and practical way of gaining much value and recognition in the healthcare industry. This profession ranks high in job opportunities and career advancement and can be performed at home without patient contact.

Career advancement for certified coders

Certified Professional Coders earn on average salaries of $50,000 plus annually. These figures are dependent on the state the coder is employed, level of education, and work experience. Your education can also include earning other certifications within the medical field to increase your value and earnings. Check out: www.bls.gov

The governing body responsible for offering medical coding training and certification in outpatient physician coding is the American Academy of Professional Coders (AAPC) and American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA). Earning your certification is an excellent reward to many doors of growth opportunities.