Wiki CPC-A Practicum (Practicode)

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Has anyone purchased this program and do you recommend it? I am graduating from a Health Records Coding Program next Friday. I interviewed for a position this week and I was given an offer for employment. There was an oversight on HR's part, in the job description it says they require CPC. I am a CPC-A (I passed my CPC exam in early April). I was called yesterday and told that they were very sorry, but they couldn't offer me the position I had accepted, but they could offer me another position that is more entry level with a lower pay grade. I accepted because I want to work and I want to get experience. However, they said that as soon as I am able to get the A removed from my certification that they would move me up into the higher paid position. Since I have completed the 80 contact hours with school, 1 year will be taken off of the apprenticeship. I also have 4 months additional experience with an externship. So I would have 8 more months of experience to gain before the A can be removed. I was thinking I could purchase the Practicode and have it completed within about 3 months. I am willing to dedicate weekends and evenings to completing it, as well as work on it while I am on vacation in June. I have read some reviews and some people seem to think it has helped them a ton but others are saying it is full of errors and they are getting bad scores because of it and they do not recommend it. Since it is almost $300 I do not want to waste my money if it is not going to be beneficial to me since I only have 8 months left to gain, but if it will be helpful and I can get my A removed sooner then I would seriously consider it. Please give any advice you may have.
 
I purchased the program in January. I have currently completed 425 questions. I am seeing it through to get the year experience towards getting my "A" off, but I do have mixed feelings towards the program. I feel the program has errors and I don't agree with some of their answers. I do feel it has been beneficial in gaining some exposure to coding though. To me it's worth the money to get the "A" off my CPC faster.
 
If I recall correctly you can get every question wrong and still get your 1 year credit. It is helpful since they are real redacted records. Nothing like when you are getting certified.
 
I used it to remove my apprentice status. I paid the extra money to get the CEUS. I found it similar to the CPC exam. I personally learned from it because I don't do any surgery coding so it was nice to code some. :)

Thank you for the info. I am starting my job in a little over a week and I am going to verify with them that as soon as I get the A removed I will be promoted to the position I was originally offered. If they confirm what the lady at HR said I believe I am going to go ahead and purchase the program.
 
If I recall correctly you can get every question wrong and still get your 1 year credit. It is helpful since they are real redacted records. Nothing like when you are getting certified.

That is very reassuring because I have read many people's comments saying that even when they get the right answer it is still counted wrong on some questions. So I was worried that if that happened and you got others wrong that the score wouldn't be the greatest and it wouldn't count. It sounds like it would be worth it just for the more real world experience.
 
Incorrect

You are incorrect in stating you obtain 1 year credit even if you get every question on the practicum wrong. The course gives you 3 attempts to pass at 70%, if you don't you contact the Aviacode.

If I recall correctly you can get every question wrong and still get your 1 year credit. It is helpful since they are real redacted records. Nothing like when you are getting certified.
 
No job after passing for cpc

I was thinking of doing this course too to get some experience and have my A removed from my CPC. It's been 2 years since I got certified and also passed the ICD 10 and haven't found any jobs willing to hire without experience. I feel like I wasted a lot of money and don't want to waste anymore if this doesn't help in finding a job. Any hiring managers that considered this experience?
Any help is very much appreciated
 
passing score

You are incorrect in stating you obtain 1 year credit even if you get every question on the practicum wrong. The course gives you 3 attempts to pass at 70%, if you don't you contact the Aviacode.

You say 3 attempts to pass at 70%... could you give some clarification as to what this means? I know that you have to complete all three modules but does the 70% requirement apply to each individual module or the average score of all 3 modules put together? I'm currently in my 3rd module, the first 2 I got around 75% on each but the 3rd module I'm not doing so well on. But my average score is still at a 74.6%... If I get under 70% on the 3rd module do I have to redo all 600 assessments, even if I end up with an average of over 70%? :confused:
 
What all books did you need to get through practicode? I currently do not have a job as a coder, so I am hesitant to spend the money purchasing new books until I actually have a job as a coder. I have been looking at the bundles, but want to buy the correct books.
 
What all books did you need to get through practicode? I currently do not have a job as a coder, so I am hesitant to spend the money purchasing new books until I actually have a job as a coder. I have been looking at the bundles, but want to buy the correct books.
I purchased Practicode right after I passed my CPC exam on December 17th 2019. I called AAPC and they stated that you can use 2019 or 2020 medical coding books.
 
passing score



You say 3 attempts to pass at 70%... could you give some clarification as to what this means? I know that you have to complete all three modules but does the 70% requirement apply to each individual module or the average score of all 3 modules put together? I'm currently in my 3rd module, the first 2 I got around 75% on each but the 3rd module I'm not doing so well on. But my average score is still at a 74.6%... If I get under 70% on the 3rd module do I have to redo all 600 assessments, even if I end up with an average of over 70%? :confused:
I am confused as well. I assumed the 3 Modules were not graded. However, with the 3 assessments that are graded you have 3 chances to get the 70% for each exam.
 
Now that I have completed and passed the three Practicode module assessments, what's next? How do I submit this for the 1 year of credit toward removing the A designation, or where can I see that this has been applied?
 
Now that I have completed and passed the three Practicode module assessments, what's next? How do I submit this for the 1 year of credit toward removing the A designation, or where can I see that this has been applied?

If you also took the CPC course through AAPC, you should be automatically converted to a CPC (I was the same day).

If you did not take the CPC course then you will likely need to contact them https://www.aapc.com/contactus.aspx (call or chat) to make sure they have been credited the 1 year.
 
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I did take the course and the certification exam, but I don't have any experience in the real world yet. I've only taken the Practicodes to get the 1 year of credit/experience.
 
I did take the course and the certification exam, but I don't have any experience in the real world yet. I've only taken the Practicodes to get the 1 year of credit/experience.

The course counts as one year, and practicode counts as the other. Check your profile. They may have already removed your "A" if you completed the course and the practicode. That is what happened to me; I chatted with them, and they told me they had already changed mine. I looked and they had :).

If they have, you can download a membership card that shows you are a CPC, and a prospective employer can look you up *HERE* to confirm.
 
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If you subscribed to Practicode, you have to pass all three modules at a minimum of 70% in order to have your "A" designation removed. If you passed two modules but not the third, you take the third module assessment over again until you pass with a minimum of 70%. You do not have to repeat all three modules. That being said, you have three attempts to pass each module at 70%. Then you can submit your scores to and also send them a copy of your college transcript and medical coding degree to: AAPC Attention: Apprentice Removals 2233 South Presidents Drive Suite F Salt Lake City, UT 84120 Make sure to include you AAPC member ID number. Hope that helps.
 
passing score



You say 3 attempts to pass at 70%... could you give some clarification as to what this means? I know that you have to complete all three modules but does the 70% requirement apply to each individual module or the average score of all 3 modules put together? I'm currently in my 3rd module, the first 2 I got around 75% on each but the 3rd module I'm not doing so well on. But my average score is still at a 74.6%... If I get under 70% on the 3rd module do I have to redo all 600 assessments, even if I end up with an average of over 70%? :confused:

When I took the course, you had to get a 70% or above on each assessment test. Not the 600 questions, but the assessment exam after you finish each module.
 
I purchased the program in January. I have currently completed 425 questions. I am seeing it through to get the year experience towards getting my "A" off, but I do have mixed feelings towards the program. I feel the program has errors and I don't agree with some of their answers. I do feel it has been beneficial in gaining some exposure to coding though. To me it's worth the money to get the "A" off my CPC faster.
Hi I got the CPC-A June 2020, do you recommend me to wait or should I take the practicode immidiately. How is it different than the CPC-A test. Your answer will be great help. Thank you.
 
If you subscribed to Practicode, you have to pass all three modules at a minimum of 70% in order to have your "A" designation removed. If you passed two modules but not the third, you take the third module assessment over again until you pass with a minimum of 70%. You do not have to repeat all three modules. That being said, you have three attempts to pass each module at 70%. Then you can submit your scores to and also send them a copy of your college transcript and medical coding degree to: AAPC Attention: Apprentice Removals 2233 South Presidents Drive Suite F Salt Lake City, UT 84120 Make sure to include you AAPC member ID number. Hope that helps.
I completed all 600 cases, but I don't see the assessment exams. I email practicode support over a week ago and haven't heard back.
 
I believe you have to get at least a 70% to pass the practicum to count toward A remove.
From what I understand, when they changed over to the new updated program there are no longer 3 modules, there are just 600 cases that need to be done, the assessments have been removed, and to qualify as "passed" requires a benchmark of 70% or higher correct coding overall - otherwise the program has to be done all over again, which is frustrating given the amount of glitches and issues many apparently encounter given the many online reviews on social media.
 
No job after passing for cpc

I was thinking of doing this course too to get some experience and have my A removed from my CPC. It's been 2 years since I got certified and also passed the ICD 10 and haven't found any jobs willing to hire without experience. I feel like I wasted a lot of money and don't want to waste anymore if this doesn't help in finding a job. Any hiring managers that considered this experience?
Any help is very much appreciated
So I have a question on practicode. Wondering if the process is worth it given:

1) Job desciptions state you have to have experience for a job
2) Yes, I know some job descriptions say 0-2 years experience, but I am finding they still truly want experience and not so much the "0" experience
3) What is the incentive to pay for Practicode if at the completion of it the "A" is dropped, but no one is willing to hire because of missing experience that no one is willing to hire in order for me to obtain the experience.

Seems like a vicious cycle of getting no where fast, like another cash grab with no payout? Can anyone attest to the fact of completion of Practicode helped them in getting hired even without experience as a coder?
 
Has anyone purchased this program and do you recommend it? I am graduating from a Health Records Coding Program next Friday. I interviewed for a position this week and I was given an offer for employment. There was an oversight on HR's part, in the job description it says they require CPC. I am a CPC-A (I passed my CPC exam in early April). I was called yesterday and told that they were very sorry, but they couldn't offer me the position I had accepted, but they could offer me another position that is more entry level with a lower pay grade. I accepted because I want to work and I want to get experience. However, they said that as soon as I am able to get the A removed from my certification that they would move me up into the higher paid position. Since I have completed the 80 contact hours with school, 1 year will be taken off of the apprenticeship. I also have 4 months additional experience with an externship. So I would have 8 more months of experience to gain before the A can be removed. I was thinking I could purchase the Practicode and have it completed within about 3 months. I am willing to dedicate weekends and evenings to completing it, as well as work on it while I am on vacation in June. I have read some reviews and some people seem to think it has helped them a ton but others are saying it is full of errors and they are getting bad scores because of it and they do not recommend it. Since it is almost $300 I do not want to waste my money if it is not going to be beneficial to me since I only have 8 months left to gain, but if it will be helpful and I can get my A removed sooner then I would seriously consider it. Please give any advice you may have.
It is very inexpensive, compared to what your wages will be. do it! you did the hardest part, getting hired
 
So I have a question on practicode. Wondering if the process is worth it given:

1) Job desciptions state you have to have experience for a job
2) Yes, I know some job descriptions say 0-2 years experience, but I am finding they still truly want experience and not so much the "0" experience
3) What is the incentive to pay for Practicode if at the completion of it the "A" is dropped, but no one is willing to hire because of missing experience that no one is willing to hire in order for me to obtain the experience.

Seems like a vicious cycle of getting no where fast, like another cash grab with no payout? Can anyone attest to the fact of completion of Practicode helped them in getting hired even without experience as a coder?
Wouldn't the fact that the "A" is removed, say to the employer that you technically "have" the necessary experience? Would'nt it be assumed?
 
The course counts as one year, and practicode counts as the other. Check your profile. They may have already removed your "A" if you completed the course and the practicode. That is what happened to me; I chatted with them, and they told me they had already changed mine. I looked and they had :).

If they have, you can download a membership card that shows you are a CPC, and a prospective employer can look you up *HERE* to confirm.
Do you know if all certification courses count as 1 year? I did not take mine through AAPC...
 
Wouldn't the fact that the "A" is removed, say to the employer that you technically "have" the necessary experience? Would'nt it be assumed?
I couldn't agree more AAPC just wants your money, they don't care about you as a member, check out the mentorship program, there are no, zero mentors, xternship not even available , internships, haven't seen any of those all of these things were promised to be true before I became a member, when i call to ask they just try to sell more training, cash grab greedy corporate business. You are on your own and waste a lot of time and money on training.
 
So I have a question on practicode. Wondering if the process is worth it given:

1) Job desciptions state you have to have experience for a job
2) Yes, I know some job descriptions say 0-2 years experience, but I am finding they still truly want experience and not so much the "0" experience
3) What is the incentive to pay for Practicode if at the completion of it the "A" is dropped, but no one is willing to hire because of missing experience that no one is willing to hire in order for me to obtain the experience.

Seems like a vicious cycle of getting no where fast, like another cash grab with no payout? Can anyone attest to the fact of completion of Practicode helped them in getting hired even without experience as a coder?
That has been my experience as well, no entry level jobs like AAPC claimed before I invested in this, very dissapointed.
 
My opinion is that Practicode is NOT experience, it is additional training. It removes the "A" but is not real world experience.
If I were hiring a position for entry level with zero experience required, someone with Practicode might stand out above someone with no experience and no additional training.
If I am seeking 1 year experience, Practicode is NOT a substitute.
My two cents is rather than paying for Practicode is to find a job somewhere in healthcare that employs coders, even if at a lower salary for now, or at a "lesser" position than your goal. When I hire a coder (whether entry level or experienced), I love seeing that prior relatable experience that makes someone a more rounded revenue cycle expert.
 
My opinion is that Practicode is NOT experience, it is additional training. It removes the "A" but is not real world experience.
If I were hiring a position for entry level with zero experience required, someone with Practicode might stand out above someone with no experience and no additional training.
If I am seeking 1 year experience, Practicode is NOT a substitute.
My two cents is rather than paying for Practicode is to find a job somewhere in healthcare that employs coders, even if at a lower salary for now, or at a "lesser" position than your goal. When I hire a coder (whether entry level or experienced), I love seeing that prior relatable experience that makes someone a more rounded revenue cycle expert.
But the problem is no one is ready to give that entry level opportunity. I live in Milwaukee, WI. Passed by CPC-A in Nov2023, Currently pursuing Praticode. I am looking for any Volunteering opportunity or any shadow coder job to just get the real time coding experience. But no luck. I am told that its not possible to share medical records as long as you are hired or mostly these days the coding department has become remote and none of the experienced coders are approachable......
 
But the problem is no one is ready to give that entry level opportunity. I live in Milwaukee, WI. Passed by CPC-A in Nov2023, Currently pursuing Praticode. I am looking for any Volunteering opportunity or any shadow coder job to just get the real time coding experience. But no luck. I am told that its not possible to share medical records as long as you are hired or mostly these days the coding department has become remote and none of the experienced coders are approachable......

Are you searching for volunteer positions only or jobs too?

I did a quick search for entry level listings in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and discovered that the Milwaukee VA is hiring. VA positions are known to hire CPC-A: https://www.usajobs.gov/job/767775300

Additionally, I saw and shared this position last week on LinkedIn after seeing the hiring manager post "I have a few entry level coding roles! We will train and pay for your credentials! Come join my fabulous team! You must live in IL, WI or IN."

Here's the link for that job:



(If you're not on LinkedIn, you should be. There are a lot of medical coding positions and recruiters on LinkedIn.)

Also, if you're not already involved with the Milwaukee local chapter, I'd recommend attending their meetings and networking. Chapters often share job listings at meetings, and there may be local hiring managers involved with the chapter too.



(I got my current job in a specialty I'd never coded before, because my current manager knew me through my local AAPC chapter. I likely never would have broken into this particular specialty otherwise, because it's a niche specialty and all positions want you to have experience.)

Good luck!
 
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Are you searching for volunteer positions only or jobs too?

I did a quick search for entry level listings in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and discovered that the Milwaukee VA is hiring. VA positions are known to hire CPC-A: https://www.usajobs.gov/job/767775300

Additionally, I saw and shared this position last week on LinkedIn after seeing the hiring manager post "I have a few entry level coding roles! We will train and pay for your credentials! Come join my fabulous team! You must live in IL, WI or IN."

Here's the link for that job:



(If you're not on LinkedIn, you should be. There are a lot of medical coding positions and recruiters on LinkedIn.)

Also, if you're not already involved with the Milwaukee local chapter, I'd recommend attending their meetings and networking. Chapters often share job listings at meetings, and there may be local hiring managers involved with the chapter too.



(I got my current job in a specialty I'd never coded before, because my current manager knew me through my local AAPC chapter. I likely never would have broken into this particular specialty otherwise, because it's a niche specialty and all positions want you to have experience.)

Good luck!
Thank so much Susan. I will definitely look in to all the options that you have mentioned......
 
I’m wondering if we can submit our medical coding certification through community college for 1 year and complete practicode for another year. Then A will be removed?
 
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