Medical billing certification - Is it good in the state you got the cert or can it be good in any state?

by Christi
(San Diego CA)

I am a current Medical Specialties student and majoring in Medical Billing and Coding along with pharm Tech, Med Assistant, and ECG reader. I hope to get my certifications in all of these but my main is the Medical Billing and Coding. My question is I live in California at the moment I graduate in November and soon I will be taking my Med Bill Certification test and I wanted to know is that certification only good in the state of California or is it good in any state I go to? I will be moving to Spokane WA come Jan 2012

Christi,

With regard to certification it should be acceptable in any state. You may check with the organization that you seek certification from - like AMBA (American Medical Billing Association), AAPC (American Academy of Professional Coders) or AHIMA (American Health Information Management Association). I've haven't heard of any certifications that are limited to a particular state - they should be applicable in any state.

Some states may license certain professions but licensing is different from certification. Licensing is typically required to demonstrate a minimum level of knowledge or ability as required by law - but I'm not aware of any states that license medical billing or medical coding.

I'll post on the site and welcome anyone's comments on this subject if they have seen otherwise.

Thanks - Gina