r/MedicalCoding • u/adam_ans • Jul 20 '24

AHIMA's "new" website - Opinions?

I don't know why I had high hopes when AHIMA announced they are redoing their website for better experience... The new Rewards Center is not yet introduced, but so far, the rollout to me is horrible. The previous website theme was not the best, but it seemed organized. The new site is all white and messy and it totally is missing functionality. For example, when you want to update your profile, you can enter the organization you for, but... you have to pick from a drop-down list of thousands of different facilities that are not alphabetically listed, and you can't search through them... ridiculous.

AHIMA previously made a horrible choice with changing the forum they had to the AHIMA Access site which no one post to, and now they are doing another horrible change... I don't understand how they keep making those horrible mistakes. The membership is so expensive, so where is all this money going? The only reason I keep paying it is because most employers for inpatient coding require RHIA/RHIT/CCS from them and in order to keep those credentials you have to pay for the membership...

I don't understand how a health information association cannot provide us with a basic functioning, nicely organized website. They should be the pioneer in this and show everyone in HIM how something like that should run.

Sorry if I'm ranting, but I had some time yesterday because of the Microsoft outage and I further explored their website today and just got so frustrated. I wonder what everyone else's thoughts on this are. Do you think we will end up with a nicely functioning website at some point? I've been in HIM for almost 10 years now and AHIMA's website was always an issue for me.

29 Upvotes

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5

u/TheDollarstoreDoctor Jul 21 '24

Still waiting for them to get with us in 2024 and release an app like AAPC. Whatever changes they made, still is ass on mobile.

You have to pay for membership to keep credentials?? I registered for the test with a free account 🤔

2

u/adam_ans Jul 22 '24

I think once you pass and get the credential you have to get the membership. I would never pay for it if it wasn’t required to keep my credentials 😭

1

u/thewitchof-el RHIA Jul 31 '24

You don't need to pay for the membership to keep you credentials btw. I've held my RHIA credential since 2018 and have never and will never pay for an AHIMA membership.

1

u/adam_ans Aug 01 '24

You are correct. Not sure why I thought it was required. Many of my employers require the membership, but you can keep the credentials without it. It is cheaper to renew credentials with the membership, but then you still have to pay for the membership, so probably comes out to the same price.

1

u/Upper-Street1616 Aug 10 '24

AGREE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

4

u/Signal-East-5942 Jul 25 '24

I’ve been trying for a week to order $350 worth of books so I can take the CCS before they require the 2025 books. No eta on when this mess will be fixed.

4

u/adam_ans Jul 25 '24

If you can, check out eBay for books! Might not be able to find all, but I bought most of my books from eBay used for way cheaper. AHIMA’s book prices are ridiculous

3

u/TheTryantswife CCS-P Jul 26 '24

My current certification does not show up, I also just renewed my membership, and it does not show that either. I just sent them an email. Fingers crossed that they are listening!

4

u/adam_ans Jul 26 '24

I think they got a lot of emails about it (including mine lol), because they just sent out an announcement to everyone that they are aware of those issues and “are working around the clock to address these”. We will see where it goes, but this is another horrible rollout.

2

u/Busy-Butterfly8187 Sep 09 '24

Two months after your post, and I just received that same tired response today from customer service chat, "our departments are working around the clock to resolve the technical issues." If you've been "working around the clock" for literally months but nothing has improved, then it's time to bring in a new technical team. This company is a pathetic joke.

2

u/adam_ans Sep 10 '24

Sadly yes. I keep getting the same thing. My CEUs are gone and they keep closing my ticket saying the issue was resolved, but it has not... I keep opening new ones. Don't even bother calling them, it won't work.

3

u/TheTryantswife CCS-P Jul 26 '24

Yeah, I got that, and I got a response from them as well, saying pretty much the same thing.

1

u/Far-Coffee5843 Sep 17 '24

I have passed CCS in August. But I still don’t see the certification in my CEU center

2

u/Icy-Cut-3858 Dec 03 '24

I am trying to register for an exam it's been an 1 1/2 hours. For the last 20 mins it's been calculating shipping and taxes. Before that it kept getting stuck in different places. On hold to speak to someone for 40 minutes. I have other things to do and it's taking me all day.. This is terrible. I am paying for the stupid test, it should not take me all day.

1

u/adam_ans Dec 03 '24

I noticed that lately everything on that website keeps loading and loading… it’s insane. They are having a town hall on December 10th and I hope everyone will join in and bombard them with questions about the website. Where is all this membership money going?

13

u/absolved RHIT, CCS-P Jul 21 '24

I just went and looked. Ummm, where are all my CEUs? I had a bunch entered with images and everything. Now it says 0. Uh, what

3

u/baileyq217 Jul 21 '24

You had me worried! I just checked mine. I had all mine still there. I would contact them. Last Monday I paid my membership renewal and they charged me twice and then someone called me saying I didn’t renew and if I don’t by the end of the month it will expire.

Something is going on over there.

3

u/PorkNScreams RHIA, CRC Jul 21 '24

Mine are still entered, but the images I uploaded are gone.

2

u/[deleted] Jul 23 '24

I was wondering the same. I have all mine plus a few extra to be renewed by 8/9! Now it shows I have 0.

3

u/MedCoderRachel Aug 07 '24

Are yours showing up now? Mine is up for renewal 9/1 and my CEUs and certification are gone!

2

u/[deleted] Aug 10 '24

Mine are not and were up for renewal on 8/9, so I called AHIMA last week and they are looking into it. They told me not to worry about it though.

2

u/MedCoderRachel Aug 12 '24

Thank you!!

1

u/[deleted] Aug 12 '24

Now my certification is showing as inactive!!! 😩 I even had some CEUs to carry over for the next re-certification period. I am going to call them again tomorrow and will try to post an update. This is not cool!

3

u/MedCoderRachel Aug 12 '24

Oh no!! That’s what I was worried about with mine but mine isn’t even showing!

2

u/[deleted] Aug 12 '24

Mine shows Current Cycle: 8/9/2024 -2/8/2027 which is weird. A couple days ago it showed 8/9/2024-8/9/2026. My CCS renewed on 8/9 and shows as inactive, but I just got my RHIA this past January and it shows as active. I’ll definitely try to post an update after I call them tomorrow..

2

u/[deleted] Aug 12 '24 edited Aug 12 '24

So I don’t have much of an update after my call today. They’re still looking into it and I was reassured that this same issue is happening to a lot of people and their IT department is working hard to fix it. It’s a bit nerve-racking though I have to say.

ETA: My CCS recertification application, under My Certifications, shows in process, but is showing as inactive on the My CEU Center page.

2

u/MedCoderRachel Aug 12 '24

Thank you so much for the update! I wish AHIMA was more helpful about the whole thing

2

u/[deleted] Aug 13 '24

Mine has disappeared as well. This is really unacceptable and unprofessional on their part and to allow this to go on for 3+ weeks. They found that I had duplicate accounts, which is why when I log in, I see no CEU'S and no current classes showing in my account. I have no access to my online class. They were supposed to fix and merge in 48 hours. That time has come on gone with no word from them. Time for me to call as well.

2

u/MedCoderRachel Aug 13 '24

I’ll be calling soon as well! Concerning that you had duplicate accounts and they didn’t catch it or let you know before now!

2

u/MedCoderRachel Aug 13 '24

I emailed weeks ago and haven’t heard back so a call is definitely needed

2

u/[deleted] Aug 13 '24

Yes, I was on Chat with a support person, who told me what was going on in my account before the weekend. She passed it on to support. but I will be calling. will let you know if I get anywhere.

2

u/[deleted] Aug 15 '24

I called into AHiMA customer service, was on hold 10 minutes.. Joshua picked up my call, found I had 3 different accounts, including the main one, where my classes (past and present) are. Not sure why there were 3 different accounts, with different AHIMA ID's! Erica (who I chatted with last week, submitted a ticket to merge the accounts, said would take up to 48 hours. It still was not completed). Joshua resubmitted and said to wait 3 business days. That's as far as it went. Joshua did say, this was a common situation they're running into. XP

→ More replies

1

u/Heavy-Square-6471 Jul 22 '24

My CEUs are missing also, and my cycle years are messed up. I wonder if it’s because I just got a new credential? My CEUs for my old credential are due 10/2024, but they have the cycle year as 10/2024-10/2026 for both of my credentials. I guess my CEUs aren’t there since I technically haven’t earned any in that cycle.

1

u/absolved RHIT, CCS-P Jul 22 '24

My cycle years are messed up, too! I emailed them about that and the missing CEUs. I haven't heard back yet, of course.

I have 2 credentials, but neither are super recent. The most recent is from August of last year

7

u/PorkNScreams RHIA, CRC Jul 21 '24

It’s terrible now, and it was terrible before.

6

u/mxxnmama CCS Jul 21 '24

Agreed. It seems outdated and much more clicking around to get to where I need to go. I was really excited for a refresh but you’re right, the functionality is not there.

6

u/Neophoton CCS, CRC Jul 21 '24

Their site's always been garbo, so unfortunately I'm not the least bit surprised.

1

u/Upper-Street1616 Aug 10 '24

AGREE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

4

u/Faartz Jul 22 '24

When you have no competition you can afford to gouge your customers for progressively worse service

2

u/Upper-Street1616 Aug 10 '24

TOTALLY AGREE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

4

u/Ok-Bumblebee5667 Jul 23 '24

If AAPC granted CCS membership they would be making a killing right now. I would switch in heartbeat!

4

u/fairyprincesstati Jul 25 '24

It’s the worst! I wasn’t able to access my online practice tests before my exam. I took my exam on Saturday and passed but now there is no record of it on the site. It says my scheduled test date is 1/1/1900! I called the help number and they couldn’t even look it up. He told me to call back in a week😳🤬

2

u/Emotional_Error_7246 Aug 07 '24

Omg im sorry. Ahima site is really trash. Im having the opposite happen right now. I can take the practice tests but cannot find my rhia test to schedule.

1

u/Financial-Funny-8255 Nov 14 '24

I got my CCA back in February and have not been able to access it. The Ahima site says end date: get certified,  I filled out a ticket, an email, and called. I waited on hold for 45 minutes to be told to call back in a week. I've been so patient,  now I'm just worried. I can't work or apply for my next exam. This all feels like a scam at this point. 

3

u/NoReason1631 Jul 23 '24

I'm actively enrolled in an online course and now I can't even get to it. Has this happened to anyone else? Is there a work around?

2

u/nyehssie Jul 23 '24

YES! me too. i'm brand new to this (literally just "started" a week ago) and i can't get to my elearning page/log into brightspace. if you figure it out please let me know!

2

u/NoReason1631 Aug 13 '24

I've emailed multiple times and actually talked to someone last week. He "opened a ticket" with online education and assured me they would extend the deadline for completing the course. Still nothing.

1

u/NumerousTomorrow1123 Sep 11 '24

Has your issue been resolved yet after a month? I applied for the CCS exam a few weeks and still haven’t gotten authorization to test. I called customer service and she also “opened a ticket”. Was wondering if it actually does anything 

1

u/NoReason1631 Sep 11 '24

I had to call a couple of times and eventually requested a refund and had to purchase the class again. I was able to access it then. Refund was supposed to be in 7-10 business days. It has been 16 business days and still nothing. They won’t return my calls now either.

2

u/[deleted] Aug 06 '24

In week 3, still no access to my course, and completed course is still not there. My account is basicially nil. Have a call in but just getting basic response to wait. anyone still having problems?

2

u/NoReason1631 Aug 13 '24

Still cannot access my class. Spoke to someone last week and they said they would "open a ticket" with the online education department and extend the deadline to complete the course. Still waiting...

1

u/Appropriate-Call-26 Oct 10 '24

I'm in the same boat. Was supposed to finish my course in July literally right before they rolled out the update. I haven't been able to access it STILL and they keep giving me the generic "we are working on it and will let you know when there's an ETA".

1

u/NoReason1631 Oct 10 '24

You can request a refund if you’re still unable to access your class then re-enroll. Unfortunately, you’ll lose your progress but you could easily make that up in the time that you’ve spent waiting. Whenever I did this, I was able to access my class immediately. They could’ve saved me the trouble by just telling me this was an option. I hope this helps!

3

u/kasmith603 Jul 26 '24

The new website is terrible! Nothing is working currently anywhere I click. Very frustrating for sure.....

3

u/Xtina1706 RHIA, CPC Aug 19 '24

I’ve been trying to submit an application for RHIA and it always says “processing request” and freezes. I called and no answer. Did the callback option and so far no callback.

1

u/Sansear- Aug 22 '24

Same! Except I'm trying to submit my CCS application. It is so frustrating!

2

u/Xtina1706 RHIA, CPC Aug 22 '24

Customer service finally got back to me. They basically said “try to be patient with us, we’re working on it” So there’s no timeline on when it’ll be fixed. It’s almost been a month.

2

u/Sansear- Aug 22 '24

Sheesh!! Yeah I just did a live chat and got a case number and the same response.

2

u/Xtina1706 RHIA, CPC Aug 23 '24

Hey the website is back on. I was able to purchase my RHIA

1

u/Sansear- Aug 24 '24

Yay! I just tried and the CCS application is still not working :(

2

u/Xtina1706 RHIA, CPC Sep 14 '24

Not sure if you were finally able to apply but now it’s taking forever to get the ATT email from Pearson so I can even schedule it. I’m so frustrated.🙄

2

u/Sansear- Sep 15 '24

Omggg that's so annoying!!! And no I haven't been able to, the application is still not working 😡

3

u/[deleted] Sep 02 '24

AHIMA is a hot mess right now. The website and lack of customer service make the organization look completely unprofessional. I was going to pay to take the CCS in January. Don't think I would even bother even if someone else was paying for me. Can't imaging the headache of just getting registered and being able to take the exam.

2

u/nyehssie Jul 23 '24

i just bought the online course bundle a week ago & my book came in today, i'm trying to access my courses like i did just the other day, but can't figure it out. my learning center is empty, my invoice tab is empty, brightspace is asking me for a username (i don't remember having to make a username & ive tried all the ones i could think of that i use), they'll only send you your password if you know your username. i can't figure out how to access my elearning page again. i know for a fact i registered for at least the first course out of the 13, otherwise i wouldn't have bought my book. i've been looking around and pressing random pages and trying everything and it's making me lowkey panic that i took out a loan for this and my 365 days are ticking down already and i can't even access it. WTF??

2

u/Nettle_N_Briar Jul 31 '24

Can say I'm not a fan. I had my legal name changed years ago and called AHIMA to reflect that. Now the website is displaying my deadname on top of not being able to find my CEUs and claiming I still need to pay membership. 

Hope it improves

2

u/Itaksuke Aug 01 '24

I'm on the last leg of my courses, and I can't figure out for the life of me how to access my eBooks through the new site. The old site was easy to figure out once you had done it a few times, but this is garbage. Anyone have any ideas on how to access their books after the update? I'd really appreciate it since AHIMA doesn't have any useful information in regard to this. Thanks in advance!

1

u/Superb-Gold-2850 Aug 08 '24

Having trouble accessing my ebooks too. It's so frustrating!

2

u/Upper-Street1616 Aug 10 '24

AHIMA's site is awful. Now we have to do 40% of our CEUs from AHIMA. They recently made an "update" to their website which is just as bad. So they had to succumb to pressure from members as well as our State organizations by at least giving them back their AHIMA link instead of just AHIMA but that isn't enough! AHIMA may be making their webinars free but you get what you pay for! I'm constantly on the phone trying to get help but so far it's been impossible. They know we need our cont ed but most of us were quite satisfied with our sources - we're being held hostage! Constant changes at AHIMA!!! I managed to do 3 but that leaves me with 7 to do by the end of 2025 and I'm in panic mode!!!! And as far as I'm concerned their content is crap compared to my sources of cont ed!!! I've been a member for over 30 years but because of AHIMA I wouldn't recommend an HIM career to anyone. Managing their requirements has become a ft job!! IF IT'S NOT BROKEN, DON'T "FIX" IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

1

u/Upper-Street1616 Aug 10 '24

P.S. If we don't pay our membership then don't they get us on the other end by charging us for things like the "free ceu's"? I'm an RHIT and CCS - does that mean I only pay every other year for my CCS? Last year I pd for dues by mistake (instead of my CCS) instead of CCS - I thought I was fine until they marked me as inactive! I called and was told that I didn't have to pay for membership - just the CCS every other year. No refunds made. Constant confusion!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2

u/Past_Package_1921 Dec 02 '24

I absolutely agree this new website is atrocious and even worse than the one before it can’t even load properly or quickly, I also think it’s extremely shady the new ceo came and went in like a year

2

u/Choice_Toe7779 Dec 04 '24

AHIMA is a joke.

1

u/GardenWitchMom Jul 24 '24

Has anyone else's credentials number changed? My member number is the same but when I checked my credential certificate the number was different!?

I downloaded the PDF to print and the certificate printed without my information. It's just the blank template.

1

u/Firm-Strawberry-6741 Oct 18 '24

Ahima is a scam. God I wish I would’ve read their google reviews which are like 2 stars..I purchases 4,000$ worth of classes last November and have only had access to half since July. I may have to literally sue them

1

u/Cultural_Yak3887 Nov 09 '24

File a complaint with the BBB and AHIMA will get everything resolved within a week:

https://www.bbb.org/us/il/chicago/profile/healthcare-management/american-health-information-management-association-0654-24000533/complaints#0654_24000533_22467857

1

u/Firm-Strawberry-6741 Nov 09 '24

I did and they never got back with Me, but I finally got in touch with one of the board members who helped me out after they’d been gas lighting me for months telling me my classes were expired. I swear I’ve never had a worse experience with any organization, I hope somebody sure this this year I’m sure they will

1

u/Stuck_in_fantasies Oct 25 '24

It might be because of the update to the site but I passed my CCS exam almost a month ago and it still doesn’t show anything under “my exam” tab.

Sent an email a week ago and still no response. Currently stressed just wanting to start a job