coding books

[mbachick25]

please forgive my ignorance on the topic of medical coding. i work for a state medical society whose members are MD's and DO's. I have been contacted by a medical coding book company to offer our members discounts on books and coding classes. i let the rep give me her sales pitch but am not 100% sold. with CMS requiring EMR/EHR, won't most coding be done electronically with coders finding the codes through the EMR/EHR system?? will hardback books still be needed for an office? also, don't most offices hire experienced coders and probably won't be looking to hire someone and pay for their training?

your thoughts are appreciated. thanks.

[Michele]

I tend to agree with your thoughts.  Personally we have encoder pro as part of our software so if we have an issue we use that.  Also, most providers I know are not looking to pay someone to train staff.

[PMRNC]

One of the rare times I disagree with Michele, I don't think the need for coding is going away at all, in fact I think it will be in just as much of demand. Certified coders jobs are completely safe IMHO. I think the EHR solutions are not going to trump certified coders at all.   I do have a coding software but it is ONLY as good as my own coding knowledge, it's no good to me without any training and/or education.  I also keep the latest coding books and now with apps for iphone I use those as well

[Michele]

Oh I don't think coder jobs are going away.   I just think that the medical coding book company wanting to offer book & coding classes to members of the medical society wouldn't be that big.  Most of the drs I deal with don't want to take on the expense of training their staff.  They usually hire the coders already trained.  And I see a move away from the hard books to the online services.  JMO but I agree that coders are still going to be in demand.  I don't see that changing any time soon.