Wiki CPC-A cannot find a job even with years of healthcare experience

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klienhart said:
Hi - I work for Ensemble Health Partners and quite often we hire new coders. Right now everything is remote, including coding training and Epic training. We currently have employees in over 40 states, as being remote, it really does not matter where you live. Search for coding jobs on ensemblehp.com. Ensemble looks for the best of the best, including new coders, so you must be highly motivated to learn and put in the effort.

Just checked out website - this job was posted 12 days ago - R002014 - outpatient coder, remote - nationwide.
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Applied
 
I wanted to update again! I landed an interview with one of the coding companies that I applied with recently! I had a phone interview with them today. I felt like the interview went well! :) One of the interviewers said that HR would probably contact me within a day or two. Anyone know if this means I may be offered a position?? This was one of my first coding interviews. I was a little nervous and wasn't sure what to expect. Some jobs that I've interviewed with in the past have hired me on the spot, or I've also heard from several days later. Thanks! I'll keep everyone posted.
 
CoderGirl35 said:
I wanted to update again! I landed an interview with one of the coding companies that I applied with recently! I had a phone interview with them today. I felt like the interview went well! :) One of the interviewers said that HR would probably contact me within a day or two. Anyone know if this means I may be offered a position?? This was one of my first coding interviews. I was a little nervous and wasn't sure what to expect. Some jobs that I've interviewed with in the past have hired me on the spot, or I've also heard from several days later. Thanks! I'll keep everyone posted.
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Nice! If they mentioned you'll be getting a call from HR- that's definitely a GOOD sign.. HR usually will only call you with an offer!
 
Great, thanks! I sure hope so! :) I'll keep everyone updated. I'll also try to document my journey as a new coder on here once I do start my first coding job, whenever that may be.
 
klienhart said:
Hi - I work for Ensemble Health Partners and quite often we hire new coders. Right now everything is remote, including coding training and Epic training. We currently have employees in over 40 states, as being remote, it really does not matter where you live. Search for coding jobs on ensemblehp.com. Ensemble looks for the best of the best, including new coders, so you must be highly motivated to learn and put in the effort.

Just checked out website - this job was posted 12 days ago - R002014 - outpatient coder, remote - nationwide.
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Hi! I have scheduled call with a Ensemble Health Partners recruiter this week. I'm excited about that. Do you know what the range of pay might be for new coders?
 
Drgarrett1 said:
I took that assessment yesterday. I was very nervous. Did they let you know your score?
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I emailed them a few days after I took the assessment to see if I passed it. They told me I passed it & setup an interview. I had a phone interview with two interviewers last week. I felt like the interview went great! I was supposed to hear from them Friday or yesterday regarding the interview, but still haven't heard anything. Have you interviewed or heard anything?? Good luck! :)
 
CoderGirl35 said:
I emailed them a few days after I took the assessment to see if I passed it. They told me I passed it & setup an interview. I had a phone interview with two interviewers last week. I felt like the interview went great! I was supposed to hear from them Friday or yesterday regarding the interview, but still haven't heard anything. Have you interviewed or heard anything?? Good luck! :)
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Hmm .. that doesn't sound good to me. What that tells me is that either they just forgot or they went ahead with another candidate and didn't bother to notify you. If you still haven't heard back by the end of the day today, I would contact them again first thing in the morning when they open for the day about your interview.
 
Thanks.. Yeah, I emailed them yesterday. I emailed a recruiter I had been working with & they said they hadn't heard anything regarding the position, they would get back to me. If I don't hear anything in a couple of days I'll probably email them again. I was excited about the interview, but don't want to seem "needy" lol..
 
andepow, that's great! I hope you get good news. I haven't heard from Ensemble yet. They are one of the companies I applied with, but I haven't heard anything. The company that I took the assessment for interviewed me, but I haven't heard back from them yet. That company asked what salary range I was looking for and I told them my preferred hourly rate.
 
Keep a positive attitude- it took my about 3 years for someone to take a chance with me- stayed with them about6 months then moved out of state- landed a great job with a non profit who never had coders before. It was a huge learning curve bc non profits bill a bit differently. They took a chance with me and im doing great now! loving auditors the providers and learning more every day!
 
bgrasson said:
Keep a positive attitude- it took my about 3 years for someone to take a chance with me- stayed with them about6 months then moved out of state- landed a great job with a non profit who never had coders before. It was a huge learning curve bc non profits bill a bit differently. They took a chance with me and im doing great now! loving auditors the providers and learning more every day!
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Thanks, bgrasson for the encouragement!!
 
If you know anyone in the healthcare field that may be able to keep an eye out for any openings that they hear about and give you a heads up on them, that is the way I would approach applying for a job. Networking is definitely a big help, that is how I started out 31 years ago. I started working for a doctor as a secretary/receptionist/biller at a local hospital and transferred to a closer hospital near my home as a transcriptionist. I worked full time and took classes for my RHIT part-time. Once I graduated and passed the RHIT exam a job in coding came up and I applied for it. Take any job, even if you have to volunteer in the field until an opening comes up. I was very blessed with my career and how things fell into place. Don't give up, be persistent. Good luck to all.
 
I have got my CPC-A on December 31 2020 and got RHIT credential in June 2020. Received an Associate degree from University of Cincinnati in Health Information Technology program in April 2020. Had several interviews but no luck so far. Need work experience as coder and Medical Records. Also tried volunteering in Medical records in nearby hospital but because of Covid they had stopped that. I am still applying alternative positions too.
After reading posts and watching Victoria's video it seems like I am not the only one who's struggling. But I think I need to have different resume for different positions. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
 
As others have said before in other posts, one good thing you can do is tailor each resume you submit to the job posting you are applying to as well as you can using their phrasing so their systems will catch your resumes faster and will be more likely to be looked at by HR.
 
RenaInMaine said:
After reading all of these responses I feel sooooo lucky to have found a position in coding. I passed the CPC in 2019, no experience in this field at all or even in the medical field but a job for surgical biller came up at the Rural Hospital and I applied never thinking I would be hired without experience but I did get hired and the training for the job was just about nothing but I have been at it for 8 months, learning as I go, Googling a lot but persevering. It is hard but I really am enjoying coding the surgeons work, mostly Colonoscopy, EGD, Hernia Repairs other things. All I can say is stick with it, and I wish you well.
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Congratulations on landing your job!! I am hoping that one day I can say the same. I absolutely love coding...I so enjoyed spending my days learning and practicing it. However, the lack of interest in my abilities and passion is very discouraging...I passed my CPC with a 90 in December 2020 and after applying to over 80 positions I have been unable to acquire ANY job within HIM or revenue cycle management. I have applied to various positions, from patient service representative, medical biller and of course coding. Clearly, my lack of experience is holding me back. Thinking of signing up for Practicode to remove the apprentice status, as well as to keep practicing coding. I am encouraged by your success and enjoyment in your position. Have a great weekend.
 
johnoneill19 said:
I have just recently been offered a job as a Medical Billing Specialist. The main reason they hired me was that I had a CPC-A certification. It showed them that I was serious about this career path. Also, they said they have plenty of medical billers but nobody is a certified coder in their office. I got my certification in February and it took about 4 months to finally get an offer. I would say anyone struggling to find work should stick with it. It is not a Coding job specifically but they were hyped about my knowledge of ICD-10-CM and it is thanks to the CPC program.
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Congrats!!
 
johnoneill19 said:
Yeah, it seems like a common theme here. I am a Registered Nurse, with a BSN, and even with experience pretty much all the employers I have talked to are telling me the CPC-A certification is not worth the paper it is written on. Wish I had done a little more research before getting this. The medical billing certificate is more useful for finding a job and getting experience before going for coding certification or jobs if that helps anyone out there. It is a different role and usually a lower salary, but it is a good way to get in the field from a lot of the resources I have spoken to.
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I totally agree. Wish I had sat medical billing certification exam instead of CPC-A first.
 
I agree with other posters that you need to stick it out when looking for a job and not give up. I encourage everyone to continue to apply for those "foot in the door jobs". You never know what an employer is truly looking for and what it is that will really set you apart from other candidates. I got my first job in medical billing after having only worked in retail and zero experience in the medical field. A few years after I was hired my boss told me that she had several qualified candidates with ample experience in medical billing but she kept coming back to me because during my 15 years of working in retail, I was working for my dad. It turns out that the person I was replacing had been fired for stealing copays and she figured that if my father trusted me to run his business for 15 years than I must be someone that could be trusted. It's not always about experience or credentials. Don't give up!
 
Stephon323 said:
Hello! I'd just like to add my input, which I hope can create some optimism! So I started my career off in Medical Billing working for a small Pulmonary Health practice and I advanced from there. I've learned quickly that it's sometimes about networking and sometimes "thinking out of the box". Not saying that you're not doing this, but this was something I learned and I did not do initially. To be honest, I did not enjoy so much working in the Pulmonary billing practice, but it gave me some experience, which is needed! During my time there, I offered extra areas in which I could be helpful. At that time, we were implementing our new patient portal service for our practice. So I offered my eagerness to help and I ended up taking lead on this initiative. Once we were up and running successfully, I then landed an opportunity working for an insurance company. Many CPC's typically work in hospitals, physician offices, billing companies, etc. Sometimes, we tend to think that these are the only areas our expertise is needed. This is not the case!

I landed a job working as a Medical Adjuster for an auto insurance company. This role involved ensuring medical claims are paid and working with claimants with regard to their injuries. It also involves medical record review, working with special investigations, and many other different areas. So please try searching for coding jobs with auto insurance companies. There's also jobs at attorney offices. I know you mentioned you live in a rural area, so this may be limited. But there's many insurance (auto/health) that hires coders. Life Insurance companies as well. I currently work from home for a Medicaid Health plan, now, so just keep an eye out in this area as well.

Wishing you the best of luck on your future endeavors~

Stephon
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Thank you, Stephon. I am starting my CPC course today and this thread is bringing me down a bit. I actually thought the way the job market was in general and hearing how coders are REALLY needed right now that I may get a job half way through the course with someone who may be eager to train while I was still in school. We'll see! Your input is helpful to a total newbie. Thanks!
 
CourtneyPedersen said:
Congratulations on landing your job!! I am hoping that one day I can say the same. I absolutely love coding...I so enjoyed spending my days learning and practicing it. However, the lack of interest in my abilities and passion is very discouraging...I passed my CPC with a 90 in December 2020 and after applying to over 80 positions I have been unable to acquire ANY job within HIM or revenue cycle management. I have applied to various positions, from patient service representative, medical biller and of course coding. Clearly, my lack of experience is holding me back. Thinking of signing up for Practicode to remove the apprentice status, as well as to keep practicing coding. I am encouraged by your success and enjoyment in your position. Have a great weekend.
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Courtney- as a Connecticut native... I can tell you it is TOUGH!! Try searching for remote openings with out-of-state companies if you haven't already.
 
Just wanted to update again.. Well, I didn't end up getting the coding position I posted about above. Not really sure why? I passed their assessment and the interview went well. However, I was just offered a position as an HCC coder from a different company. I had a phone interview for the HCC position & passed the assessment for the job. I'm excited and nervous! Anyone done HCC coding? Is this a good first medical coder job? The person who interviewed me said the position was entry level.
 
CoderGirl35 said:
Just wanted to update again.. Well, I didn't end up getting the coding position I posted about above. Not really sure why? I passed their assessment and the interview went well. However, I was just offered a position as an HCC coder from a different company. I had a phone interview for the HCC position & passed the assessment for the job. I'm excited and nervous! Anyone done HCC coding? Is this a good first medical coder job? The person who interviewed me said the position was entry level.
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I am just starting out too, so I can’t speak to the HCC position. I start my new job august 16th. However, I wanted to say congratulations! I am trying to find the positives today, and this is certainly one. Congratulations!
 
Congratulations mjandbj! That's awesome! Same here.. I think I'm just going to take it day by day after starting and see how it goes. :) I'm excited to get a chance to try being a coder for a while.. Keep us updated on how it goes, I'll try to do the same.
 
CoderGirl35 said:
Just wanted to update again.. Well, I didn't end up getting the coding position I posted about above. Not really sure why? I passed their assessment and the interview went well. However, I was just offered a position as an HCC coder from a different company. I had a phone interview for the HCC position & passed the assessment for the job. I'm excited and nervous! Anyone done HCC coding? Is this a good first medical coder job? The person who interviewed me said the position was entry level.
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Congratulations!🌠 ...so glad you shared your experience. It is NOT easy- we may get a lot of "No's" before we land something but the key is to stay positive! So happy for you- it's only up from here!!
 
I see an Ensemble Health Partners employee posted on this thread and what they say about the company is 100% true. While the pay is good it is not the very best, but is that the be all and end all......money? This company has come through the pandemic without furloughing one single person (out of a workforce of more than 6000) and is THE company to work for if you want a great culture, good benefits, and clear opportunities to grow and learn.
If you see any opportunities on their website then apply; you have nothing to lose. Anyone looking for a Profee auditor position(remote), check out their careers page on the website; we are a great team (and truly a team) which is important.
 
hrmoore1994@gmail.com said:
I passed the CPC exam in the spring of 2020, and the only job I have been able to find is collections. There's not really in room for advancement at this time where I currently work, so I'm job hunting again. I live in a rural area (Marion, VA), so jobs are hard to come by. I worked as a LPN before I made the decision to change career paths. I have applied to many positions, but I have been turned down because I lack experience. I'm willing to work in billing, or anything relevant to get my foot in the door. Any help is appreciated!!
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Good morning,

You'll want to confirm the process and the details, but at my last position (Dignity Health) a couple MAs were able to remove the "A" based on their experience in that role. Since your AAPC course counts as 1 year toward removing your A, you only need one additional year certified - and it doesn't have to be 100% coding. Unless something has changed in the past couple years. Check it out, because that "-A" usually automatically deletes you from the resume queue. Without the -A you at least get the chance to test/interview. And, yes, ther is always a skills test, so learn E/M leveling 2021 guidelines. 😁
 
sls314 said:
Networking is one of the best ways to improve chances for any job in any industry. It's not something unique to coding.

Fortunately, there are plenty of opportunities for networking in the coding industry. Local chapters, LinkedIn profiles, official AAPC Facebook groups, other large non-official Facebook groups ran by coders, this AAPC forum - a combination of any or all of these things can help with developing contacts with other coders, recruiters, and even hiring managers.

Every day I see recruiters post open positions in Facebook groups and on LinkedIn. Anyone who isn't following along in those forums is missing out.

(When people do post in the Facebook or LinkedIn groups, it's also really important that they remember they're posting in a professional group and trying to put their best foot forward. That should go without saying, of course. Yet it's not uncommon to see someone being rude, argumentative, or otherwise inappropriate in one of the groups, so I just wanted to give a general reminder to anyone reading this.)

In my chapter meetings, sometimes jobs get brought up that haven't even been posted to the public yet. Anyone present at that meeting who is interested can have a chance to get in a resume before the position is posted. That can help stand out amongst a sea of applicants.

It's not even just about job postings. Networking can also help polish professional communication skills and also bring learning opportunities. It's a good way to keep a finger on the pulse of the industry
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What is the name of the facebook group you are in?
 
hrmoore1994@gmail.com said:
I passed the CPC exam in the spring of 2020, and the only job I have been able to find is collections. There's not really in room for advancement at this time where I currently work, so I'm job hunting again. I live in a rural area (Marion, VA), so jobs are hard to come by. I worked as a LPN before I made the decision to change career paths. I have applied to many positions, but I have been turned down because I lack experience. I'm willing to work in billing, or anything relevant to get my foot in the door. Any help is appreciated!!
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I have a couple of remote coding positions available. Please email me at britte@bp1consulting.com and let me know what specialities you have worked with in any way. Maybe we can help each other?!
 
Britte said:
I have a couple of remote coding positions available. Please email me at britte@bp1consulting.com and let me know what specialities you have worked with in any way. Maybe we can help each other?!
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Hi Britte!
Do you have any remote/ full-time/ part-time coding positions opening/ available right now? or any thought about website or career group that I can looking into? I really appreciate your help :)
 
mjandbj said:
I think the Christ hospital in Cincinnati is hiring still. Are you close to there?
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Hi Mjandbj! Thank you for your information, I googled and found out that Chris hospital in Cincinnati is in Ohio state. Currently, I am living in O'fallon, Missouri :). If you know any recruiting information in this area or remote. Please let me know and I greatly appreciate you.
Thank you

Phuong Le
 
I am a new coder CPC-A seeking employment also. Indeed and Zip Recruiter haven't help me much any suggestions? I am getting discouraged and feel like my education is going to waste. Is there anyone who is willing to take a look at my resume?
 
sls314 said:
Any person pursuing certification should do their due diligence before taking a course or an exam. Make sure that they are pursuing the certification that is most appropriate for their career goals.

AAPC certifications are required for many (if not most) positions in the coding industry and are not a "scam." However, earning the certification is only the first step in the job search. As you're finding, a coding certification is not an automatic ticket to a coding job. However, there are absolutely jobs out there.

I earned my CPC-A in December 2018. Through a combination of networking, a professionally written resume, and a broad job search, I got that initial coding experience and now get contacted by recruiters frequently offering me opportunities.

If you'd like to continue working for the same hospital system, then I'd definitely listen to the feedback from the managers in the coding department. The CPC is not an inpatient facility coding credential. However, you could also look at profee coding positions with the physician groups affiliated with that health system and use your CPC credential that way.

It may also be worthwhile to have your resume professionally done. I know of at least 2 resume writers that specialize in coding resumes, and you'd be surprised at how affordable it can be to have a professional review your resume. They could help you frame some of the experience in healthcare that you already have.

Additionally, if you are still interested in working in coding, you may want to keep an open mind about the types of positions that are out there. In addition to facility and profee coding, there are also opportunities available in areas like risk adjustment. Many of those positions are willing to take CPC-A and train them, and risk adjustment positions can pay quite well once you get even 1 year of experience doing it. (I do remote risk adjustment coding projects on the side from time to time, and typically get paid in the $25-$30/hour range for my work.)

Best of luck to anyone who is still searching.
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Can u email me please the info to coding resume writers at michellph@gmail.com Thanks
 
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