Medical Coding and Billing Specialist - MEDC.COC

The healthcare profession is undergoing tremendous change. Trained professionals in medical coding, billing, and reimbursement are in high demand. The health information technician interprets information from the medical chart and converts it to numbers. This technician may work as a coding specialist who supports clinical care and assists medical research in hospitals and other healthcare facilities. The billing specialist provides information for reimbursement purposes, and ensures that the correct documentation is submitted with health claims. Professionals are also needed to apply cash to patient accounts after payments are received from patients or insurance companies.

The medical coding and billing specialist may work for hospitals, ambulatory centers, visiting nursing associations, insurance companies, ambulance companies, dental and physician offices, and many other health organizations. After several years of work experience, the specialist may also work from home as an independent medical biller.

A professional with coding, billing, reimbursement and cash application skills will have many career options. Such professionals will be in demand as physicians, physical therapists, mid-level practitioners, and other health professionals establish new practices. The demand for skilled professionals is great, and the room for advancement is tremendous.

The Medical Coding and Billing curriculum is planned to improve the accuracy, consistency, and reliability of health data; to increase the supply of quality coding, billing, and reimbursement specialists; and to provide assurance of qualifications to institutions when they are subject to review. Coding is the transformation of verbal descriptions of diseases, injuries, and procedures into numerical designations.

Students must achieve a minimum “C” (73%) or better in every MEDC course. The student who is unable to meet the minimum requirement will be withdrawn from the program. An applicant for the program must be a high school graduate or the equivalent (GED) or have a United States high school equivalency as evaluated by a credential evaluation service for foreign-educated candidates. She/he must place on the ENGL-100  level on the STCC English placement test.

The Medical Coding and Billing student must be able to meet the following technical standards: possess motor skills, manual dexterity, vision/hearing normal or device-corrected, eye/hand coordination, and skill in the art of oral and written communications.

Applicants must be high school graduates or hold a certificate of equivalency. Courses in the use of computer skills and/or life experience in detailed administrative skills will be positively evaluated.

Program Requirements: Student must complete the following prior taking any Health Info Tech course:

1. Placement in college level reading
2. Placement in college level English (ENGL-100 )
3. Completion of Medical Terminology (MAST-101 )
4. Keyboarding rate of 25 wpm

Programmatic Technical Standard (PDF)

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Upon the successful completion of the requirements of this program, a Certificate of Completion in Medical Coding and Billing Specialist from STCC will be awarded.