Medical Records Technician (Coder Outpatient) NTE 13 Months
This job opportunity announcement (JOA) will be used to fill three (3) full-time and temporary not-to-exceed 13 months Medical Records Technician (Coder-Outpatient) vacancies at the Lexington, KY Veteran Affairs Medical Center (VAMC), with Heath Administrative Service. These positions may be converted to permanent a position based on the needs of the facility. Incumbent will not need to compete or apply if converted to permanent. This is an open continuous vacancy announcement. This announcement is intended as a mechanism of providing consideration for the greatest number of potential candidates. Applicants will first be referred 15 calendar days after the opening date and periodically throughout the announcement period. Final application disposition will be completed once all positions have been filled or the announcement reaches the end of the open period stated in the announcement. This position is located in the Health Information Management (HIM) section at the Lexington, Kentucky VA Health Care System. MRTs (Coder) are skilled in classifying medical data from patient health records in the hospital setting, and/or physician-based settings, such as physician offices, group practices, multi-specialty clinics, and specialty centers. These coding practitioners analyze and abstract patients' health records and assign alpha-numeric codes for each diagnosis and procedure. To perform this task, they must possess expertise in International Classification of Diseases (ICD), Current Procedural Terminology (CPT), and the Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS). MRTs (Coder) may also provide education related to coding and documentation. This is the journey level for this assignment. Outpatient MRTs (Coder) at this level perform the full scope of outpatient coding including ambulatory surgical cases, diagnostic studies and procedures, outpatient encounters, and/or inpatient professional services. Outpatient duties consist of the performance of a comprehensive review of documentation within the health record to accurately assign ICD-10-CM codes for diagnoses, CPT/HCPCS codes for surgeries, procedures and evaluation and management services. They independently review and abstract clinical data from the record for documentation of diagnoses and procedures to ensure it is adequate and appropriate to support the assigned codes. They code all complicated and complex disease processes, patient injuries, and all procedures in a wide range of ambulatory settings and specialties. They also directly consult with the clinical staff for clarification of conflicting, incomplete, or ambiguous clinical data in the health record. MRTs (Coder) must abstract, assign, and sequence codes into encoder software to support medical necessity, resolve encoder edits, and ensure codes accurately reflect services rendered. They also review provider health record documentation to ensure that it supports the diagnostic and procedural codes assigned and is consistent with required medical coding nomenclature. They also query clinical staff with documentation requirements to support the coding process. They enter and correct information that has been rejected, when necessary. MRTs (Coder) ensure audit findings have been corrected and refiled. They also use various computer applications to abstract records, assign codes, and record and transmit data. Work Schedule:
Monday - Friday, tour of duty flexible between the hours of 6:
00 am and 6:
00 pm. (Tour of duty will be fixed 8 hours.) Telework avaliable for the full-performace GS-08 grade only for highly qualified applicants. Remote telework may be considered. Financial Disclosure Report:
Not required Definitions. a. Journey Level. The full performance level for the MRT (Coder) assignment is GS-8. b. Creditable Experience. Experience is only creditable if it is directly related to the position to be filled. To be creditable, the candidate's experience must have demonstrated the use of knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) associated with current practice and must be paid or non-paid employment equivalent to a MRT (Coder). c. Quality of Experience. To be creditable, experience must be documented on the application or resume and verified in an employment reference or through other independent means. d. Part-Time Experience. Part-time experience as a professional MRT is creditable according to its relationship to the full-time work week. For example, an MRT would receive one week of full-time credit for each two weeks of half-time work. e. Apprentice/Associate Level Certification. This is considered an entry level coding certification and is limited to certification obtained through the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA), or the American Academy of Professional Coders (AAPC). o be acceptable for qualifications, the specific certification must represent a comprehensive competency in coding across a wide range of services. Stand-alone specialty certifications do not meet the definition of apprentice/associate level certification and are not acceptable for qualifications. Certification titles may change and certifications that meet the definition of apprentice/associate level certification may be added/removed by the above certifying bodies. However, current apprentice/associate level certifications include:
Certified Coding Associate (CCA), Certified Professional Coder-Apprentice (CPC-A) and Certified Outpatient Coding-Apprentice (COC-A). Basic Requirements:
United States Citizenship:
Physical Requirements. See VA Directive and Handbook 5019, Employee Occupational Health Service. English Language Proficiency. MRTs (Coder) must be proficient in spoken and written English as required by 38 U.S.C. 7403(f). Certification. Persons hired or reassigned to MRT (Coder) positions in the GS-0675 series in VHA must have either (1), (2), or (3) below:
(1) Apprentice/Associate Level Certification through AHIMA or AAPC. (2) Mastery Level Certification through AHIMA or AAPC. (3) Clinical Documentation Improvement Certification through AHIMA or ACDIS. Experience and Education (1) Experience. One year of creditable experience that indicates knowledge of medical terminology, anatomy, physiology, pathophysiology, medical coding, and the structure and format of a health records. OR (2) Education. An associate's degree from an accredited college or university recognized by the U.S. Department of Education with a major field of study in health information technology/health information management, or a related degree with a minimum of 12 semester hours in health information technology/health information management (e.g., courses in medical terminology, anatomy and physiology, medical coding, and introduction to health records); OR (3) Completion of an AHIMA approved coding program, or other intense coding training program of approximately one year or more that included courses in anatomy and physiology, medical terminology, basic ICD diagnostic/procedural, and basic CPT coding. The training program must have led to eligibility for coding certification/certification examination, and the sponsoring academic institution must have been accredited by a national U.S. Department of Education accreditor, or comparable international accrediting authority at the time the program was completed; OR, (4) Experience/Education Combination. Equivalent combinations of creditable experience and education are qualifying for meeting the basic requirements. The following educational/training substitutions are appropriate for combining education and creditable
Experience:
(a) Six months of creditable experience that indicates knowledge of medical terminology, general understanding of medical coding and the health record, and one year above high school, with a minimum of 6 semester hours of health information technology courses. (b) Successful completion of a course for medical technicians, hospital corpsmen, medical service specialists, or hospital training obtained in a training program given by the Armed Forces or the U.S. Maritime Service, under close medical and professional supervision, may be substituted on a month-for-month basis for up to six months of experience provided the training program included courses in anatomy, physiology, and health record techniques and procedures. Also, requires six additional months of creditable experience that is paid or non-paid employment equivalent to a MRT (Coder). Preferred
Experience:
Prior coding experience in multi-disciplinary outpatient setting(s) and/or surgical/ procedure coding is preferred. In addition to the basic requirements, the below qualification requirements must be met at the GS-08 grade in which you are applying. Grade Determinations:
The following criteria must be met in determining the grade assignment of candidates. For full details of each grade requirement, assignments and knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs), please review https:
//apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/10941430. GS-08 (a) Experience. One year of creditable experience equivalent to the next lower grade level. (b) Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate KSAs for this grade level. Please view the application questionnaire for the assignments and qualifications and KSAs for this grade level:
https:
//apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/10941430 References:
VA Handbook 5005/122, Part II, Appendix G557, dated 12/10/2019. The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-08. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the GS-08. Physical Requirements:
The work is primarily sedentary. There is walking, bending and reaching required such as for filing or locating material, and carrying items such as reports, documents, and supplies. Entering data and word processing on a personal computer may result in physical problems from the effects of repetitive motion and eyestrain.
Estimated Salary: $20 to $28 per hour based on qualifications.
Monday - Friday, tour of duty flexible between the hours of 6:
00 am and 6:
00 pm. (Tour of duty will be fixed 8 hours.) Telework avaliable for the full-performace GS-08 grade only for highly qualified applicants. Remote telework may be considered. Financial Disclosure Report:
Not required Definitions. a. Journey Level. The full performance level for the MRT (Coder) assignment is GS-8. b. Creditable Experience. Experience is only creditable if it is directly related to the position to be filled. To be creditable, the candidate's experience must have demonstrated the use of knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) associated with current practice and must be paid or non-paid employment equivalent to a MRT (Coder). c. Quality of Experience. To be creditable, experience must be documented on the application or resume and verified in an employment reference or through other independent means. d. Part-Time Experience. Part-time experience as a professional MRT is creditable according to its relationship to the full-time work week. For example, an MRT would receive one week of full-time credit for each two weeks of half-time work. e. Apprentice/Associate Level Certification. This is considered an entry level coding certification and is limited to certification obtained through the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA), or the American Academy of Professional Coders (AAPC). o be acceptable for qualifications, the specific certification must represent a comprehensive competency in coding across a wide range of services. Stand-alone specialty certifications do not meet the definition of apprentice/associate level certification and are not acceptable for qualifications. Certification titles may change and certifications that meet the definition of apprentice/associate level certification may be added/removed by the above certifying bodies. However, current apprentice/associate level certifications include:
Certified Coding Associate (CCA), Certified Professional Coder-Apprentice (CPC-A) and Certified Outpatient Coding-Apprentice (COC-A). Basic Requirements:
United States Citizenship:
Physical Requirements. See VA Directive and Handbook 5019, Employee Occupational Health Service. English Language Proficiency. MRTs (Coder) must be proficient in spoken and written English as required by 38 U.S.C. 7403(f). Certification. Persons hired or reassigned to MRT (Coder) positions in the GS-0675 series in VHA must have either (1), (2), or (3) below:
(1) Apprentice/Associate Level Certification through AHIMA or AAPC. (2) Mastery Level Certification through AHIMA or AAPC. (3) Clinical Documentation Improvement Certification through AHIMA or ACDIS. Experience and Education (1) Experience. One year of creditable experience that indicates knowledge of medical terminology, anatomy, physiology, pathophysiology, medical coding, and the structure and format of a health records. OR (2) Education. An associate's degree from an accredited college or university recognized by the U.S. Department of Education with a major field of study in health information technology/health information management, or a related degree with a minimum of 12 semester hours in health information technology/health information management (e.g., courses in medical terminology, anatomy and physiology, medical coding, and introduction to health records); OR (3) Completion of an AHIMA approved coding program, or other intense coding training program of approximately one year or more that included courses in anatomy and physiology, medical terminology, basic ICD diagnostic/procedural, and basic CPT coding. The training program must have led to eligibility for coding certification/certification examination, and the sponsoring academic institution must have been accredited by a national U.S. Department of Education accreditor, or comparable international accrediting authority at the time the program was completed; OR, (4) Experience/Education Combination. Equivalent combinations of creditable experience and education are qualifying for meeting the basic requirements. The following educational/training substitutions are appropriate for combining education and creditable
Experience:
(a) Six months of creditable experience that indicates knowledge of medical terminology, general understanding of medical coding and the health record, and one year above high school, with a minimum of 6 semester hours of health information technology courses. (b) Successful completion of a course for medical technicians, hospital corpsmen, medical service specialists, or hospital training obtained in a training program given by the Armed Forces or the U.S. Maritime Service, under close medical and professional supervision, may be substituted on a month-for-month basis for up to six months of experience provided the training program included courses in anatomy, physiology, and health record techniques and procedures. Also, requires six additional months of creditable experience that is paid or non-paid employment equivalent to a MRT (Coder). Preferred
Experience:
Prior coding experience in multi-disciplinary outpatient setting(s) and/or surgical/ procedure coding is preferred. In addition to the basic requirements, the below qualification requirements must be met at the GS-08 grade in which you are applying. Grade Determinations:
The following criteria must be met in determining the grade assignment of candidates. For full details of each grade requirement, assignments and knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs), please review https:
//apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/10941430. GS-08 (a) Experience. One year of creditable experience equivalent to the next lower grade level. (b) Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate KSAs for this grade level. Please view the application questionnaire for the assignments and qualifications and KSAs for this grade level:
https:
//apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/10941430 References:
VA Handbook 5005/122, Part II, Appendix G557, dated 12/10/2019. The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-08. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the GS-08. Physical Requirements:
The work is primarily sedentary. There is walking, bending and reaching required such as for filing or locating material, and carrying items such as reports, documents, and supplies. Entering data and word processing on a personal computer may result in physical problems from the effects of repetitive motion and eyestrain.
- Department:
0675 Medical Records Technician - Salary Range:
$50,687 to $65,894 per year
Estimated Salary: $20 to $28 per hour based on qualifications.
|
|
 | |
