Medical Billing & Coding Program Nets Great Results

• 607 Registered Students for the Medical Billing & Coding Program
• 355 Students have Completed the Program
• 252 Students are Still Pending
• 33% of the Students Received a Job or Offer Letter as a Result of the Training and Certificate
• 21% of the Students Received a Salary Increase
• 86% of the Students are Pursuing Additional Training and Education for the National Certification for Medical Billing & Coding
• 64% of the Students are Pursuing Additional Education in Other Healthcare Fields
• 1,000 Licenses were Utilized During the Training Period

PCCC Awarded $4.67 Million Training Grant

Passaic County Community College (PCCC) was awarded a $4.67 million Multi-Skilled Healthcare Worker Training grant in March from the U.S. Department of Labor Education and Training Administration (DOLETA). The grant enables the Healthcare Services Advisory Council as well as the Healthcare Services Site Administrators to continue to develop a qualified and trained workforce to address industry needs that was started through the support of North Jersey Partners.

This three-year grant will train 850 incumbent healthcare employees to maintain and further develop their skills as well as 300 unemployed workers at no cost. The training program will include courses in Electronic Medical Records, Pharmacy Technician, Phlebotomy, and Customer Service. The grant also includes funding to develop career lattices and for career placement counselors to assist individuals find the right job.

The training program will be developed as modules so individuals can take one, a set, or all of the courses available. If a participant successfully completes all of the modules, he/she will be awarded 15 credits at PCCC.

The free training program is open to Passaic County residents and is slated to begin in late summer. For further information, please contact Donna Stankiewicz at dstankiewicz@pccc.edu or (973) 684-5218.

FREE Online Medical Billing and Coding Certificate Training Program
One of the Top Ten Hottest Jobs

The U.S. Department of Labor reports that the demand for Medical Billing and Coding professionals remains, and will remain high. North Jersey Partners is offering free online training courses for 300 individuals in Medical Billing and Coding. North Jersey Partners is supporting this effort through a pilot program in conjunction with MEDCOM and Essex County College (ECC). MEDCOM will provide the array of courses and ECC will offer a certificate in Medical Billing and Coding after students complete 10 mandatory online core courses. Students may take an additional 20 free online courses offered by MEDCOM in Medical Billing and Coding.

Medical coders assign codes to specific illnesses, injuries, and medical procedures under a system of coding that is used across the healthcare system, from doctors' offices, hospitals, clinics, home health and nursing home facilities, insurance companies and federal agencies.

Medical Billing and Coding is an excellent career that offers a tremendous amount of growth and flexibility. The majority of medical billers and coders get certified, and some eventually start their own medical billing business from home. This is great career for stay at home moms who are interested in working from home.

Health Service Site Administrator, Robert C. Spellman Jr., MHA stated, "We are looking for this program to be rolled out statewide, if it proves to work successfully. We will be looking to partner with the Workforce Investment Boards/One-Stop Career Centers and the local community colleges to develop a new paradigm in the way healthcare staff and professionals are trained."

The goals of this training initiative are to:

1. Improve and increase healthcare employee retention.
2. Help improve the NJ unemployment rate by placing individuals in jobs.
3. Attract people from dying industries to healthcare.
4. Enhance skills for new and existing employees.
5. Outline a clear road map for students and employees to achieve career advancement, promotions or wage increase.

 

APPLICANT CRITERIA for RECEIVING FREE ONLINE TRAINING LICENSE

• Applicant must live in Sussex, Morris, Warren, Bergen, Passaic, Hudson, Essex, Middlesex or Union County.
• Applicant must complete one course within the first 15 days of receiving the online license or the licenses will be canceled.
• Applicant must complete the 10 mandatory core online Medical Billing & Coding courses within 90 days or three months.
• Applicant must have a basic understanding and knowledge in computer skills and Internet skills.
• Applicant must have basic skills in reading and writing.
• Applicant must be a U.S. citizen.
• Applicant must complete AOSOS form.
• Applicant must have a valid e-mail address.
• Applicant must have access to high speed Internet.

 

SALARY RANGE for MEDICAL BILLERS & CODERS

Salary.com

Medical Records Coding Technician - Newark, NJ 07101

Medical Records Coding Technician - Newark, NJ 07101

Benefit	Median Amount	% of Total
Base Salary	$47,651	70.4%
Bonuses	$24	0.0%
Social Security	$3,647	5.4%
401k/403b	$1,716	2.5%
Disability	$477	0.7%
Healthcare	$5,722	8.5%
Pension	$2,193	3.2%
Time Off	$6,234	9.2%
Total	$67,665	100%

 

HOW TO REGISTER

All individuals interested in this FREE online training program are required to contact coordinator Gessika Mathieu at Mathie.gessika@gmail.com or Assistant Shanerah Green at Shan.green@yahoo.com or Call (973) 877-1904.

Addressing Employment Opportunities in Health Services

The North Jersey Partners Health Services initiative is underway with the hiring of Site Administrators Ken Christensen and Robert Spellman. These seasoned health service professionals will work directly with hospitals and healthcare facilities to understand workforce needs as well as link these organizations to the programs offered by local colleges and universities as well as the services provided by the public workforce system.

The goal of this North Jersey Partners initiative is to address the critical shortage of nurses and allied health care workers in northern New Jersey. Christensen and Spellman offer value-added services by addressing the workforce challenges facing this high growth, high demand industry. In turn, they will help to identify the capacity of the community colleges, four-year insititutions, and other training providers to deliver educational programs to equip workers with the necessary skills to find employment. They will also assist in connecting skilled employees to prospective employers.

The anticipated outcomes of this initiative is to increase enrollment in healthcare training programs; increase the number of incumbent workers trained; increase retention rates of program participants; and reduce recruitment and training costs to employers. Christensen is responsible for Bergen, Hudson and Passaic counties while Spellman will manage Morris, Sussex, and Warren counties.

In New Jersey, healthcare is the third leading industry and is expected to add over 4,000 jobs to the local economy by 2012. The demand for Registered Nurses (RNs) exceeds supply by 12 to 17 percent. Moreover, the healthcare industry demands entry-level personnel with demonstrated basic skills and cultural competencies to respond to the needs of diverse populations.

If you would like further information about this North Jersey Partners initiative and the services provided please contact:

Ken Christensen for Bergen, Hudson, and Passaic Counties - kenc@passaiccounty.nj.org

Robert Spellman for Morris, Sussex and Warren Counties - rspellman@co.morris.nj.us

Healthcare Services Advisory Council

Name	Organization	Title
Maureen Bekheet	Union County College	Counselor/Student Development Specialist
Marie Blough	Union County College	Recruiter - Allied Health Careers
Patricia Castaldi	Union County College	Director, Practical Nursing Program
Ken Christensen	Passaic County Community College - Passaic WIB/WIRED Grant	Health Services Site Administrator
Lucinda Corrado	Preakness Healthcare Center	Executive Director
Marylou DeRoma-Ragaza	Passaic County Community College	PCA/Fellowship Coordinator
Gail Hein	Union County College Foundation	Director, Academic Learning Centers
Lanisha Makle	Workforce Investment Board/Passaic County	Director
James Masterson	Union County College Foundation	Executive Director of Development
Dr. Jacqueline McGlade	College of Saint Elizabeth	Dean of Graduate Programs
Kathleen Michell	Union County College	Coordinator of Liaison Activities (Grant Coordinator)
Jack Patten	Workforce Investment Board/Morris, Sussex and Warren County	Director
Beatriz Rodriguez	Union County College Foundation	Assistant Director of Enrollment Development Services
Robert Spellman	Passaic County Community College/Morris WIB/WIRED Grant	Health Services Site Administrator
Donna Stankiewicz	Passaic County Community College	Assistant Dean, Nurse Education & Health Sciences
Bernadette Tiernan	William Paterson University	Executive Director, Center for Continuing and Professional Education
Kathy Weaver	Newark Alliance	Vice President of Programs and North Jersey Partners WIRED Coordinator
Barbara Williams	Union County College Foundation	Director of Resource Development