Medical Records Technician (Coder Outpatient )

Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met.

01Basic Requirements

United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.

02Experience and Education

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, 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, 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, Experience/Education Combination. Equivalent combinations of creditable experience and education are qualifying for meeting the basic requirements. Certification.

Must have either (1), (2), or (3) below: Apprentice/Associate Level Certification through AHIMA or AAPC. Mastery Level Certification through AHIMA or AAPC. Clinical Documentation Improvement Certification through AHIMA or ACDIS.

May qualify based on being covered by the Grandfathering Provision as described in the VA Qualification Standard for this occupation (only applicable to current VHA employees who are in this occupation and meet the criteria).Grade Determinations: In addition to the basic requirements for employment, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates. Medical Records Technician (Coder-Outpatient), GS-4 Experience or Education. None beyond basic requirements.

Medical Records Technician (Coder-Outpatient), GS-5 Experience. One year of creditable experience equivalent to the next lower grade level; -OR- Education. Successful completion of four years of education above high school leading to a bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities.

In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: Ability to use health information technology and software products used in MRT (Coder) positions (e.g., the electronic health record, coding and abstracting software, etc.). Ability to navigate through and abstract pertinent information from health records. Knowledge of the ICD CM, PCS Official Conventions and Guidelines for Coding and Reporting, and CPT guidelines.

Ability to apply knowledge of medical terminology, human anatomy/physiology, and disease processes to accurately assign codes to outpatient/ambulatory surgery records, based on health record documentation. v. Knowledge of The Joint Commission requirements, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), and/or health record documentation guidelines. Ability to manage priorities and coordinate work, in order to complete duties within required timeframes, and the ability to follow-up on pending issues.

Medical Records Technician (Coder-Outpatient), GS-6 Experience. One year of creditable experience equivalent to the next lower grade level. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: Ability to analyze the health record to identify all pertinent diagnoses and procedures for outpatient coding and evaluate the adequacy of the documentation.

Ability to determine whether health records contain sufficient information for regulatory requirements, are acceptable as legal documents, are adequate for continuity of patient care, and support the assigned codes. This includes the ability to take appropriate actions if health record contents are not complete, accurate, timely, and/or reliable.

Ability to apply laws and regulations on the confidentiality of health information (e.g., Privacy Act, Freedom of Information Act, and Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)). Ability to accurately apply the ICD CM, procedure coding system (PCS) Official Conventions and Guidelines for Coding and Reporting, and CPT guidelines to coding scenarios. v.

Comprehensive knowledge of current classification systems, such as ICD CM, CPT, and HCPCS, and skill in applying said classifications to outpatient episodes of care, and/or inpatient professional services based on health record documentation. Medical Records Technician (Coder-Outpatient), GS-7 Experience. One year of creditable experience equivalent to the next lower grade level. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities.

In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: Skill in applying current coding classifications to a variety of specialty care areas for outpatient episodes of care and/or inpatient professional services to accurately reflect service and care provided based on documentation in the health record.

Ability to communicate with clinical staff for specific coding and documentation issues, such as recording diagnoses and procedures, ensuring the correct sequencing of diagnoses and/or procedures, and verifying the relationship between health record documentation and coder assignment. Ability to research and solve coding and documentation related issues. Skill in reviewing and correcting system or processing errors and ensuring all assigned work is complete.

Medical Records Technician (Coder-Outpatient), GS-8 Experience. One year of creditable experience equivalent to the next lower grade level. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: Ability to analyze the health record to identify all pertinent diagnoses and procedures for coding and to evaluate the adequacy of the documentation.

This includes the ability to read and understand the content of the health record, the terminology, the significance of the findings, and the disease process/pathophysiology of the patient. Ability to accurately perform the full scope of outpatient coding, including ambulatory surgical cases, diagnostic studies and procedures, and outpatient encounters, and/or inpatient professional fee services coding.

Skill in interpreting and adapting health information guidelines that are not completely applicable to the work or have gaps in specificity, and the ability to use judgment in completing assignments using incomplete or inadequate guidelines.

03Preferred Experience

Listed under Education.Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/.The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-8. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of GS-4 to GS-8.

04Physical Requirements

In accordance with VA Handbook 5019 - Employee Occupational Health Service.

Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional Major Duties may include but not limited to: Assigns codes to documented patient care encounters (outpatient and/or inpatient professional services) covering the full range of health care services provided by the VAMC. Adheres to accepted coding practices, guidelines and conventions when choosing the most appropriate diagnosis, operation, procedure, ancillary, or evaluation and management (E/M) code to ensure ethical, accurate, and complete coding.

Applies advanced knowledge of medical terminology, anatomy & physiology, disease processes, treatment modalities, diagnostic tests, medications, procedures as well as the principles and practices of health services and the organizational structure to ensure proper code selection. Selects and assigns codes from the current versions of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD), Current Procedural Terminology (CPT), and/or Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS).

Performs a comprehensive review of the patient health record to abstract medical, surgical, ancillary, demographic, social, and administrative data to ensure complete data capture. Assists facility staff with documentation requirements to completely and accurately reflect the patient care provided; provides technical support in the areas of regulations and policy, coding requirements, resident supervision, reimbursement, workload, accepted nomenclature, and proper sequencing.

Ensures provider documentation is complete and supports the diagnoses and procedures coded. Searches the patient health record to find documentation justifying code assignment based on an expanded knowledge of the organization and structure of the patient record. Utilizes the facility computer system and software applications to correctly code, abstract, record, and transmit data to the national VA database in Austin.

Corrects any identified data errors or inconsistencies in a timely manner to ensure acceptance in the national VA database within established timelines. Uses a variety of computer applications in day to day activities and duties, such as Outlook, Excel, Word, and Access; competent in use of the health record applications(VistA and CPRS) as well as the encoder product suite.

Conducts re-reviews of codes abstracted for outpatient encounters identified by the VERA committee to determine if based on the documentation the specific VERA coding requirements were followed; corrects coding as needed to ensure proper patient classification in the VERA program. Codes inpatient professional fee services for identified inpatient admissions. Code selection is based upon strict compliance with regulatory fraud and abuse guidelines and VA specific guidance for optimum allowable reimbursement.

Establishes the primary and secondary diagnosis and procedure codes for outpatient encounters following applicable regulations, instructions, and requirements for allowable reimbursement; links the appropriate diagnosis to the procedure and/or determines level of E/M service provided.

Codes all Operating Room procedures reported in the Surgical Package of the VistA hospital system; applies ICD and CPT coding guidelines and selects proper codes using the current code set and the encoder product suite; ensures all procedures file to the appropriate Patient Care Encounter (PCE); adds Anesthesia and Pathology codes to the PCE encounter for all billable surgical cases.

Reviews and codes assigned fee service Care in the Community outpatient encounters using the paper or electronic documentation obtained from non-VA facilities such as Community Hospitals, Emergency Rooms, military facilities, etc. Codes diagnoses from paper forms for VA registries such as Agent Orange, Ionizing Radiation, Persian Gulf, Prisoner of War, etc. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 7:00am-3:30pm. Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized.

Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized. Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases. Paid Time Off: 37-50 days of annual paid time offer per year (13-26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year). Parental Leave: After 12 months of employment, up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave in connection with the birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child.

Child Care Subsidy: After 60 days of employment, full time employees with a total family income below $1Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA. Insurance: Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement). Telework: Remote 100% Outside of Area. Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Functional Statement #: 62350F, 62353F, 62355F, 62356F, 62357F Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized. Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized.