"Retesting for ICD-10?"

Are you confused about whether ICD-10 means credentialed coders would have to retest?  Well, according to the Journal of AHIMA, certified professionals will need ICD-10-specific CEUs.

Keep in mind that, this is not additional CEUs but CEUs that count as part of your regular total CEU requirements.  Currently the following is AHIMA’s ICD-10-specific CEUs requirements:

CHPS = 1

CHDA = 6

RHIT = 6

RHIA = 6

CCS-P = 12

CCS = 18

CCA = 18

Do you have more than one AHIMA credential? 

If you have more than one credential you will need to complete the highest number of CEUs of all your credentials.

For instance, at the time of this posting I hold the RHIT and CCS-P so the highest number of ICD-10-specific CEUs I will need is 12.  I am in the processing of preparing to sit for the CCS and I’ll need a total of 18 ICD-10-specific CEUs after passing that exam.

I routinely search job listings for medical coders to stay abreast of which credentials are in demand. I’ve noticed that AHIMA’s Certified Coding Associate (CCA) credential is rarely listed as a requirement for medical coding jobs.  It begs the question, why is AHIMA requiring their CCA professionals to complete so many ICD-10-specific CEUs?  I’m sure AHIMA has a logical reason for this but I digress.

Bottom line is that AHIMA certified professionals will not have to retake the certification exams. We will simply have to maintain our CEUs while completing the required ICD-10-specific CEUs.

This is a big relief as I was among the worried and couldn’t image having to retake the certification exams. 

References:

AHIMA. (2011). ICD -10 CEU Requirements for AHIMA Certified Professionals. Journal of AHIMA November – December 2011 p.71