Define medical necessity, and discuss the way that medical coding links diagnoses and procedures to establish it.
Discuss the types of health care organizations that employ medical coders, comparing facility (inpatient and outpatient) and physician practice coding environments.
Describe the importance of the documentation in medical records in the medical coding process.
Understand the requirements for and procedures to guard the confidentiality of patients' protected health information under HIPAA.
Briefly describe the purpose of the HIPAA Privacy Rule, the HIPAA Security Rule, the HIPAA Electronic Health Care Transactions and Code Sets standards, and National Identifiers.
List the basic steps in the medical coding process.
Describe the laws that regulate accurate and compliant medical coding.
Identify the skills, attributes, and ethical behaviors that successful medical coders exemplify.
Define the opportunities for professional certification as a medical coder.
