February 22 & 23, 2015 marked the first Insurance & Coding Specialist certification meeting, which replaced the current examination on November 10, 2015.  Our Director, Brandi Lippincott, was one of only 6 educators throughout the country, specifically chosen to work on that exam. 

Other meetings were held April 27, 28 & 29, 2015, October 14 & 15, 2015, and December 14 and 15, 2015 to write test questions, work on developing the test, and finally develop a cut score. 

In July, 2013 Merit Training Center upgraded some of our offerings:

Our Medical Assistant Course has been modified to allow students to get one additional certification, their Certified Patient Care Technician (CPCT). With our students being hired on at Virtua as Patient Care Tech's, we realized this will be one additional certification that will make them even more qualified than before for these positions.

Our Accounting & QuickBooks with Microsoft Office program has been upgraded to QuickBooks 2013.  In addition, we have added the availability for our students to get their IC3 certification.  We feel like this will make our students that much more employable!

Host Pia Louise, of "TinyWhale Talks...", invited Brandi Lippincott, founder of Merit Training Institute as a guest on her program May 23, 2013.  An on-demand episode can be found here.

December 4, 5 & 6, 2011 marked the fourth Item writing workshop held by ATI, the NHA's sister company.  Our Director, Brandi Lippincott, was one of 200 educators throughout the country that was again invited to attend the conference in Kansas City, KS.  This time she reviewed, wrote and improved questions for the Certified Electronic Health Records Specialist (CEHRS) exam.  She was further chosen to be 1 of 5 educators to review the final version of the exam. This complete revamping of the exam is expected to be released early 2012.

Merit's ongoing close partnership with ATI and NHA only serves to ensure that our graduates are on the cutting edge of what is expected of them, not only during a certification exam, but also with local area employers.

August 28, 29 & 30, 2011 marked the third set of ATI/NHA meetings our Director, Brandi Lippincott, has attended.  After her return, she was hand picked to be 1 of 5 educators on a panel chosen to review the draft Certified Medical Administrative Assistant (CMAA) certification exam.  She was further chosen to be 1 of 3 educators to review the final version of the exam.  This complete revamping of the exam is expected to be released early 2012.

March 7 & 8, 2011 marked the second Item writing workshop held by ATI, the NHA's sister company.  Our Director, Brandi Lippincott, was one of 200 educators throughout the country that was again invited to attend the conference in Kansas City, KS.  This time she reviewed, wrote and improved questions for the Certified Medical Administrative Assistant (CMAA) exam as 1 of 5 on the panel. 

"I thouroughly enjoyed seeing the culmination of so many educators hard work into questions that Merit students will soon be seeing in upcoming exams.  The improvment of these exams will result in better employer acknowledgement and higher salaries for students with passing grades."

July 26 & 27, 2010 marked the first Item writing workshop held by ATI, the NHA's sister company, to write test questions for the Certified Billing & Coding Specialist (CBCS) exam.  Our Director, Brandi Lippincott, was one of 200 educators throughout the country that was invited to attend the conference in Kansas City, KS.  From this experience and training on writing test questions, the exams at Merit Training Institute were enhanced and improved.  15 test questions for the CBCS exam were written and a greater understanding of testing methodology was gained.

School Teaches Billing, Coding

By: Julie Peak

Burlington County Times

Published: Monday, June 14, 2010

Tucked between Victoria's Secret and Leather & Shoes at the Burlington Center Mall in Burlington Township is a small vocational school called the Merit Training Institute.

The school, which opened in December, provides courses in medical billing and coding and eventually hopes to provide certified medical assistant training.

Brandi Lippincott, Merit's owner and director, has more than nine years of experience in adult vocational school training in Burlington County. Lippincott, who has a degree in finance from Rutgers University, said she has always dreamed of opening her own school.

"I really fell in love with this industry," the Medford resident said. "I love helping people, and the sterile nature of finance could not do that for me."

Merit students will be able to hone skills that are important in many medical facilities for a variety of jobs, Lippincott said. For example, those employed in medical billing and coding must handle paperwork, insurance claims and confidential medical records, she explained. Advertisement

With President Obama's health care plan making it mandatory for all doctors' offices to switch to electronic health records by 2015, people trained in medical billing and coding are in demand, Lippincott said.

"Billing and coding is one of the few occupations still hiring," she said.

Employment is Merit Training Institute's primary focus, according to Lippincott. The school offers an on-site placement coordinator to its graduates to help with writing resumes, practicing interview skills, and finding a job.

"It doesn't do any good to get a good education if you can't find a job after you graduate," said Lippincott, who was born in Alaska and relocated to New Jersey in 2000.

Classes begin every month. Anyone interested in enrolling is encouraged to schedule an interview and take a tour.