AI summary: Lead CDI Coder translates healthcare documentation into standardized medical codes (ICD-10, CPT) for accurate billing and regulatory compliance while maintaining quality standards.
Who We Are
Evergreen Nephrology partners with nephrologists to transform kidney care through a value-based, person-centered, holistic, and comprehensive approach to kidney care. We believe patients living with kidney disease deserve the best care. We are committed to improving patient outcomes and improving quality of life by delaying disease progression, shifting care to the home, and accelerating kidney transplants.
We help nephrologists focus on the right patients at the right time across the full care spectrum. We do this by providing them with the best-in-class interdisciplinary clinical resources, analytical insight and tools, and services to patients. We listen to the needs of our patients, our employees, and our client partners, continually working to push beyond the status quo in which the care system manages patients today.
Who You Are
You are devoted, compassionate, and enjoy being on the front lines of healthcare, changing the lives of patients by supporting them and the team by focusing on customers. You’re excited about being part of a team that is building a healthcare delivery model that ensures the highest possible quality of life and best outcomes for those in our care. You believe people living with kidney disease deserve the best person-centered, holistic, comprehensive care and want to influence the healthcare system to drive towards that. You thrive in innovative and evolving environments with high rates of change.
Your Role
As a Lead CDI Coder you are responsible for partnering with physician offices within our established partnerships to assist in translating healthcare documentation into standardized codes, ensuring accurate coding and billing of patient encounters, as supported by the medical record. You serve as a subject matter expert in Coding and Documentation.
Role Responsibilities
Accurately code diagnoses based on documented information, ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements and that the assigned codes accurately represent the clinical information documented by the provider
Ensure documentation supports appropriate level(s) of care and severity of illness when applying ICD-10, CPT, and other relevant codes for billing and regulatory compliance
Maintain a 95% productivity rate
Communicate with physicians and other healthcare providers to clarify documentation, ensuring that diagnoses and procedures are properly documented in compliance with clinical standards
Issue queries to healthcare providers when documentation appears ambiguous, incomplete, or inconsistent, requesting clarification or additional details be added to the medical record to ensure accurate documentation
Ensure that the queries are compliant with industry standards and regulatory guidelines
Stay updated on current coding guidelines, clinical protocols, and regulatory changes, including Medicare and Medicaid guidelines on billing and coding, to support provider compliance therewith
Assist in improving the quality of clinical documentation to support various quality initiatives, such as HEDIS, CMS, and other contractual or enterprise-initiated performance metrics
Participate in performance improvement projects aimed at improving documentation practices and outcomes
Conduct audits of medical records to identify trends in documentation, both positive and negative, to help the organization improve documentation practices and provider education efforts
Provide ongoing education to clinical staff, coders, and other healthcare providers on best practices in clinical documentation, coding guidelines, and regulatory compliance
Develop training programs to address documentation deficiencies and improve overall documentation quality
Collaborate with departments such as compliance, revenue cycle, and quality management to optimize the documentation improvement process
Other duties consistent with this role, as assigned.
Required Qualifications
High school diploma, GED, or suitable equivalent
3+ years recent outpatient medical coding experience
Must possess one of the following coding credentials: CPC, CRC, CCS, CPMA or similar
Strong knowledge of ICD-10-CM, Category II and CPT coding
Proficiency in medical terminology, anatomy, and physiology
Familiarity with healthcare laws, regulations, and other applicable guidance, such as Medicare, Medicaid, HEDIS, and CMS performance measures
Knowledge of risk adjustment methodology and Hierarchical Condition Categories (HCC)
Ability to analyze complex medical records, identify documentation gaps, and determine appropriate queries
Strong written and verbal communication skills
Meticulous attention to detail that ensures a high level of accuracy in your work product
Ability to identify discrepancies in clinical documentation and partner with providers to resolve issues efficiently.
Familiarity with electronic health records (EHR), CDI software, and healthcare documentation systems is essential
Tenacity required to drive initiatives forward, overcome obstacles, and achieve goals despite challenges
Intermediate skills with MS Office Suite of products including Outlook and Teams
Able to work effectively in a primarily remote environment:
Home internet must support a minimum download speed of 25 Mbps and upload speed of 10 Mbps. Cable, Fiber, or DSL connections hardwired to the internet device are recommended
Evergreen will provide remote employees with telephony applications and equipment to meet the business requirements for their role
Employees must work from a dedicated space lacking ongoing interruptions to protect member PHI / HIPAA information
Preferred Qualifications
Associate’s or Bachelor’s Degree in Nursing (BSN/ASN), Health Information Management (HIM) or related healthcare field
HCC Coding experience
Compensation
The pay range for this role is $70,000 – 80,000+ annually. Exact pay is determined based on experience, education, demand for the role, and other role-specific factors.
This role is also eligible for a quarterly bonus.
Benefits
Evergreen Nephrology’s total rewards program is designed to support you in and outside of work. You can expect:
Paid time off starting at 4 weeks for full-time employees
12 paid holidays per year
Medical, dental, vision and life insurance, including an HSA with employer match
Reimbursement for continuing medical education for eligible roles
A 401(k) program where Evergreen matches up to 4% of contributions after six months of tenure
Paid parental leave
A robust training and development program that starts with onboarding and continues throughout your career with Evergreen Nephrology
Evergreen Nephrology is an equal opportunity employer. Applicants will not be discriminated against because of race, color, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, religion, national origin, citizenship status, disability, ancestry, marital status, veteran status, medical condition or any other protected category under local, state or federal laws.
If you are an applicant with a disability who requires reasonable accommodation for any part of the hiring process, please contact us for assistance at talent@egneph.com.