Medical Coding Certificate: 525

: 525

This is a selective program with specific admission requirements. Students who plan to major in medical coding will be assigned the temporary major of pre-medical coding: 525 until they are officially admitted to the medical coding certificate program. Students may take preparatory courses and courses that fulfill General Education requirements during the waiting period. As an alternative to being assigned a temporary major, students waiting for admission to the medical coding certificate program may choose to major in general studies or any other open-enrollment program. The Office of Records and Registration will assign a matriculated code once students are admitted to the medical coding certificate program. For additional information, contact the Office of Records and Registration at 240-567-5000 or the program advisor.

The medical coder/abstractor/biller certificate curriculum is designed to prepare students to function as medical coders, abstractors, and billers in health record services located in hospitals, nursing homes, ambulatory care facilities, insurance companies, and governmental agencies. The coder/abstractor/biller is trained in the following functions normally performed by a health record service: analyzing and technically evaluating health records and reports; compiling, interpreting, and utilizing hospital and health care statistics; coding symptoms, diseases, and operations according to recognized classification systems; and abstracting and retrieving medical information. Students will be introduced to specialty coding and electronic billing requirements in an outpatient setting. All students must complete HINM-designated courses within the three years prior to graduation. HINM-designated courses not meeting this time requirement must be retaken, or the student must test out in current course content. This program can be completed either on campus or online.