Medical Insurance Specialist Technical Certificate Program

The Medical Insurance Specialist program is a two-semester certificate program designed to prepare individuals to understand billing procedures, basic coding, insurance guidelines, medical terminology, and regulatory changes affecting insurance billing and coding.  Employment of individuals with these skills is essential for healthcare providers, whether the provider is a physician, clinic, hospital or nursing home.  A concentrated amount of time is dedicated to those skills to provide the students with optimal knowledge and skill to function in the marketplace.  The program is designed to offer a wide variety of learning experiences including classroom lecture, computerized software and clinical practicum.

Admission, Retention, and Graduation Requirements

Any student desiring to pursue a technical certificate in Medical Insurance Specialist must:

1. All students admitted into the Medical Insurance Specialist Technical Certificate program will meet the same criteria as established for any technical certificate program offered by Walters State Community College. Primary among these criteria is graduation from high school or a passing score on the GED assessment..
2. Indicate Medical Insurance Specialist as the desired major on WSCC Application form.
3. Each student enrolled in the Medical Insurance Specialist Certificate program will be monitored, advised, and counseled. Students grades will be evaluated at the end of each semester by the director of the Medical Insurance Specialist Program. A student must maintain the following standards or be dismissed from the program: (a) a grade of "C" or better in each course; (b) complete the designated prerequisite/corequisite courses.
4. Program graduation requirements include the successful completion of the courses listed below with a minimum grade of "C" in each course.
5. In addition, admission into an allied health program requires the following:  (a) a completed physical health form; (b) evidence of malpractice liability insurance; (c) a signed and dated acknowledgement of the Drug/Alcohol Abuse Policy and Consent forms.  The physical health form, malpractice insurance, and Tennessee Professional Assistance fee are at the student’s expense.

Frequently Asked Questions concerning the program:

• Pay ranges from $6.50 - $14.00 hourly.

• Pay is better in larger cities such as Knoxville and Johnson City than in the more rural areas.

•  Medical billing is advertised a lot as a home-based business, but in our region of the country that is not very popular and I discourage students from expecting physicians in our region to allow them to do their billing from home.

• Medical billing is completing the electronic claim form with insurance information and demographic information about the patient along with the correct codes for the diagnoses and procedures and the correct physician identifying information to get the office visit/hospitalization reimbursed by the insurance company.

Estimated Expenses

Textbooks	$500-600 per semester
Professional Liability Insurance	$42

Medical Insurance Specialist Program Curriculum

Course No.	Course Title	Credit Hours
MDTR 1010	Medical Terminology	5
MDCD 1010	Basic ICD-9-CM Coding	3
MDCD 1020	Basic CPT/HCPCS Coding	3
MDIS 1010	Physician Office Billing	3
MDTR 1030	Fundamentals of Medical Science	3
CPSC 1100	Using Information Technology	3
MDIS 1020	Insurance Procedures Practicum	3
	Total Credit Hours	23

Click here for a description of courses