Ok so if you’re a medical coding student, the CPC exam is probably never too far from your mind. For starters–you have to code quickly. Bear in mind that there are 100 questions that you have to answer in 4 hours. And to add insult to injury–did you know that there are only certain coding books that are allowed to be used during the exam? Let’s talk about it.
One of the many messages I get on the daily from my followers on Tiktok is–What year coding books can you use for the exam? AAPC allows you to use the current years books OR the previous year. So, now it is July 2024 so you can use 2024 OR 2023 coding books. But once it’s 2025–you can only use 2025 or 2024 books. This makes sense when you think about it. Many people take a medical coding course and by the time they take the CPC exam, it is a new year. I’m glad AAPC allows previous years books.
But here’s the kicker. There are only certain editions/publishers of the coding books that AAPC allows. For the CPT book, it has to be the AMA’s CPT Professional Edition. But the good news is, for the ICD-10-CM book and HCPCS book, you have more options. You can use any edition from any publisher. AAPC publishes coding books, but you can also check out the ICD-10-CM Expert book from Optum.
So, in a nutshell, there are certain requirements for the CPC exam and the coding books you can use. Just do your research and make sure you’re using books that AAPC allows. More info about this can be found HERE on the AAPC website.
Remember to come back next week–I’ll be talking about how you can highlight your books for the exam 🙂
More you might be interested in :
Coding Confidence: Exam Strategy Workshop
Medical Coding Training Course