HBMA Unveils its Enhanced Certification Program for 2011

HBMA Unveils its Enhanced Certification Program for 2011

By Judson S. Neal, Chair of HBMA’s Certification Committee

November 30, 2010

There has never been a better time for both first- and third-party medical billing professionals to evaluate the importance of certification. Language in this year’s Health Care Reform bill specifically describe the government’s desire for medical billers to become registered or certified, and it is the belief of lawmakers that this higher level of accountability and more stringent guidelines toward compliance will help to safeguard against fraudulent and abusive billing practices. HBMA’s Certified Healthcare Billing and Management Executives (CHBME) program provides that assurance by encouraging excellence within its membership through education and better awareness of the issues affecting our industry.

CHBME is designed for owners and senior managers of HBMA member companies and is a distinction earned and maintained through active participation in educational programs that focus on the revenue cycle of healthcare professionals. This year, association leadership and the certification committee have focused on enhancing the program to provide added significance to the title in an industry facing increased legislative and regulatory scrutiny. Among the changes taking effect in 2011, the certification program will now include:

· Custom, secure logins so participants can review completed courses, credits earned and real-time additions to the modules;

· Additional testing and competency requirements including the CHBME final exam;

· Identification of certain modules and courses, coupled with minimum content requirements;

· More stringent attendance requirements, to be tracked via electronic record keeping.

More information on the CHBME program can be found on the association’s certification page.