Medical Coder | $70/hr | Remote

About the role

We are seeking experienced Certified Inpatient Medical Coders, CCS Professionals, CIC Coders, DRG Specialists, and Hospital Coding Experts to contribute to a remote AI project focused on inpatient medical coding, clinical documentation review, and coding accuracy. You will review complex inpatient medical records, assign and validate ICD-10-CM and ICD-10-PCS codes, determine principal and secondary diagnoses, assess POA indicators, validate MS-DRGs, and provide detailed feedback on difficult coding scenarios.

Responsibilities

• Review and annotate inpatient medical records including admission notes, history and physicals, progress notes, consultations, operative reports, procedure notes, laboratory results, imaging reports, and discharge summaries.
• Assign and validate ICD-10-CM diagnosis codes and ICD-10-PCS procedure codes based on documented clinical information.
• Identify principal diagnoses, secondary diagnoses, complications, comorbidities, and reportable procedures.
• Sequence codes according to inpatient coding conventions and official guidelines.
• Assign and validate Present on Admission indicators.
• Review MS-DRG assignments and identify CC and MCC conditions that affect reimbursement and case classification.
• Identify documentation gaps, ambiguities, conflicting information, or unsupported code assignments.
• Review hospital-acquired conditions, patient safety indicators, and other inpatient quality-related coding elements.
• Provide clear explanations for complex coding decisions and guideline interpretations.
• Complete structured annotation, coding review, and quality assurance tasks with high accuracy.
• Collaborate remotely with project stakeholders to clarify requirements and resolve complex coding scenarios.

Qualifications

• Certified Coding Specialists, Certified Inpatient Coders, Inpatient Medical Coders, Hospital Coders, Facility Coding Specialists.
• Senior Inpatient Coders, Lead Medical Coders, Coding Auditors, Coding Quality Specialists, Coding Validation Professionals.
• DRG-focused backgrounds: DRG Coders, DRG Validators, MS-DRG Specialists, DRG Auditors, Inpatient Reimbursement Specialists.
• Clinical documentation backgrounds: CDI Specialists, Clinical Documentation Integrity Professionals, Coding/CDI Auditors, Clinical Documentation Review Specialists with strong inpatient coding expertise.
• Hospital coding backgrounds: Acute Care Coders, Surgical Coders, Trauma Coders, Oncology Coders, Cardiology Coders, Transplant Coders, Specialty Inpatient Coders.
• Additional relevant backgrounds: Coding Educators, Coding Consultants, Coding Compliance Specialists, Revenue Integrity Professionals, Health Information Management professionals with substantial inpatient coding experience.

Requirements

• Active AHIMA Certified Coding Specialist credential or AAPC Certified Inpatient Coder credential.
• Hands-on inpatient coding experience using ICD-10-CM and ICD-10-PCS.
• Strong knowledge of MS-DRG methodology and inpatient reimbursement logic.
• Experience determining principal and secondary diagnoses.
• Experience assigning POA indicators and reviewing CC and MCC conditions.
• Strong understanding of UHDDS definitions and Official Coding Guidelines.
• Ability to review complex inpatient clinical documentation accurately.
• Excellent attention to detail and coding consistency.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Comfortable working independently in a remote environment.

Skills

• Professional inpatient coding experience within acute care hospitals or health systems.
• Experience coding complex medical, surgical, trauma, oncology, cardiology, or transplant admissions.
• Experience with coding audits, DRG validation, coding quality assurance, or compliance review.
• Experience using AHA Coding Clinic guidance to resolve difficult coding scenarios.
• Experience collaborating with Clinical Documentation Integrity teams or responding to documentation clarification issues.
• Experience with hospital-acquired conditions, patient safety indicators, or inpatient quality reporting.
• Experience using encoder software, DRG grouper tools, and electronic health record systems.