Medical Records Technician (Coder)

Not Required

Duties

Major duties include but are not limited: Perform audits of encounters to identify areas of non-compliance in coding. Facilitate improved overall quality, completeness, and accuracy of coded data. Assist facility staff with documentation requirements to completely and accurately reflect the patient care provided. Provide technical support in the areas of regulations and policy, coding requirements, resident supervision, reimbursement, workload, acceptednomenclature, and proper sequencing. Directly consult with the clinical staff for clarification of conflicting or ambiguous clinical data. Use computer applications with varied functions to produce a wide range of reports, to abstract records, and review assigned codes. Perform prospective and retrospective coding audits and use results to identify documentation, coding inadequacies, and re-educate clinical and coding staff based on audit results. Act independently to plan, organize, and perform auditing with emphasis on data validation, analysis, and generation of reports. Assist in the development of guidelines for data quality, consistency, and monitoring for compliance to improve the quality of clinical, financial, and administrative data. Ensure that all coded data is fully documented and supported. Maintain statistical database(s) to track the results and validate the program. They identify patterns and variations in coding practices with regular reports to the medical staff and management. Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional Work Schedule: 7:30am-4:00 pm Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases Paid Time Off: 37-50 days of annual paid time offer per year (13-26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year) Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior [work experience] or military service experience. Parental Leave: After 12 months of employment, up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave in connection with the birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child. Child Care Subsidy: After 60 days of employment, full time employees with a total family income below $144,000 may be eligible for a childcare subsidy up to 25% of total eligible childcare costs for eligible children up to the monthly maximum of $416.66. Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA Insurance: Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement) Telework: Available. This is a remote position. Virtual: This is a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 61712F Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Auhtorized

Requirements

You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job. Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959. Must be proficient in written and spoken English. Subject to background/security investigation. Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment. Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement. As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1 or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider: your performance and conduct; the needs and interests of the agency; whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service. Upon completion of your trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Qualifications

Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met. Basic Requirements: United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy. Auditor assignments can be established for any of the coder subspecialties (outpatient, inpatient, or outpatient and inpatient combined). The subspecialty will be reflected in the title, e.g., MRT (Coder) Auditor (Outpatient). Experience. One year of creditable experience equivalent to the journey grade level of a MRT (Coder) Certification. Employees at this level must have a mastery level certification. Mastery Level Certification through AHIMA or AAPC. May qualify based on being covered by the Grandfathering Provision as described in the VA Qualification Standard for this occupation (only applicable to current VHA employees who are in this occupation and meet the criteria). Grade Determinations: Advanced knowledge of current coding classification systems such as ICD, CPT, and HCPCS for the subspecialty being assigned (outpatient, inpatient, outpatient and inpatient combined) Ability to research and solve complex questions related to coding conventions and guidelines in an accurate and timely manner Ability to review coded data and supporting documentation to identify adherence to applicable standards, coding conventions and guidelines, and documentation requirements Ability to format and present audit results, identify trends, and provide guidance to improve accuracy Skill in interpersonal relations and conflict resolution to deal with individuals at all organizational levels Perferred Experience: 1 year of experience of creditable experience to the next lower grade; OR in a directly related field. Reference: VA Handbook 5005, Appendix 122. For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-8. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is GS-9. Physical Requirements: See VA Handbook 5019.

Education

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

Other Information

Receiving Service Credit for Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed. During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status. VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority. If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement. Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.