As noted on the AAPC website, individuals are expected to have at minimum an associate degree and at least two years of medical coding experience, and they must submit an AAPC membership payment with their examination applications.
Test takers have five hours and 40 minutes to complete the exam and are allowed to use a code manual while taking it.
The exam's questions involve the correct application of CPT, HCPCS Level II procedure and supply codes and ICD-9-CM diagnosis codes used for billing professional medical services to insurance companies. The test also covers various guidelines and coding categories: evaluation and management, anesthesia, surgery, radiology, pathology and laboratory, and medicine.
In addition to medical terminology, the CPC exam serves to gauge a coder's comprehension of human anatomy and physiology. In order to identify the body's structures and functions, test takers should have a basic knowledge of the cardiovascular, digestive, endocrine, lymphatic, muscular, nervous, reproductive and skeletal systems.
If you don't do well on the exam, you are entitled to one free retake. It's worth noting that your AAPC membership must be renewed every year, and to maintain the certification after passing the exam, you must complete 36 continuing education units every two years.