Today, we’d like to introduce you to the Michigan Medical Billers Association (MMBA).
Hello Michigan Medical Billers Association, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
We are a non-profit organization dedicated to the education and professional advancement of medical billers, coders, managers, and physician office staff. We pride ourselves on offering a low-cost membership that offers an array of quality benefits for our members. We offer our members at least 20 CEUs a year between live webinars, recorded/OnDemand webinars, and in-person meetings (That’s excluding special events like our Annual MMBA Expo, which hosts about six for a full-day event!).
Our CEUs are accepted and/or approved by AAPC, AMBA, and AHIMA, depending on the certification you’re maintaining. MMBA is best known for creating networking opportunities and organizing educational seminars on medical billing, coding, and physician office related topics to keep members up to date on industry hot topics and current issues.
We also create unique networking events when attendees join our in-person events. Speakers representing third-party payers and experts from various healthcare fields are often asked to participate in both online and in-person events. Each chapter holds a minimum of three educational opportunities a year, which are FREE to members and open to all MMBA members regardless of location and non-members are welcome for a nominal fee.
Michigan Medical Billers Association is a non-profit organization founded in 1990 by a small group of medical billers from Genesee County. As word spread and interest grew, our membership expanded to several areas throughout the state of Michigan. Today, we are an organization comprised of several hundred members representing medical specialties of all kinds. Our membership consists of a diverse group of medical billers, coders, practice managers, billing companies, and consultants.
MMBA Chapters:
- East Chapter – (Flint and surrounding areas)
• Mid-Michigan– (Lansing and surrounding areas)
• Northeast Michigan– (Saginaw, Bay City, and surrounding areas)
• Northern Michigan – (Traverse City and surrounding areas)
• South/Southeast Michigan – (Warren and surrounding areas)
• West Michigan – (Grand Rapids, Muskegon, and surrounding areas)
MMBA is dedicated to meeting the educational and networking needs of our members, physician employers, and third-party payers. Our existence is dependent upon having the respect and support of each of these groups.
We all face challenges, but would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
For the most part, we have had tremendous success with the support of our organization and what we have to offer. We are beyond blessed with a core group of loyal members who believe in us and greatly value what our MMBA represents/offers.
Currently, the biggest challenge and struggle with recently is the inflation of prices. (We know we aren’t alone in this struggle, as businesses and offices are also feeling the pinch.) Increasing CEU costs, increasing location rental, and food costs are presenting challenges that are becoming harder and harder to navigate as we continue to promote in-person networking and quality educational experiences at low costs.
These increases have unfortunately forced our hand to make recent membership cost increases, but we are still proud to say that we are the best bang for the buck when it comes to CEUs that are accepted by the credentialing bodies of AAPC, AMBA, and AHIMA.
Another challenge our association is facing is businesses no longer investing in their employees’ MMBA memberships, resulting in our membership declining. We understand the financial strain many offices, facilities, and families across the US are currently facing, and as an organization, we are trying to provide the most economical package available in the industry.
Many of our returning members continue to pay out of their own pockets and can attest to an MMBA yearly membership being a valuable tool by helping provide the knowledge to do their jobs more efficiently and compliantly. The MMBA board believes in this ever-changing world of medical billing and coding, and the knowledge of how to do your job to the best of your ability is invaluable to any medical biller/coder.
Educated and credentialed employees, with their thumb on the pulse of the medical billing and coding world, are vital to the medical office in mitigating costs by being committed to integrity, committing fewer errors, and bringing more revenue into their workplaces through effective billing and coding knowledge.
We are really pushing forward with advertising by word of mouth by getting ourselves out there at different meetings and events being held this year, 2024. If you happen to find, think of, or host one of these educational events yourself and think we would find a great network of people, please send us the information! We are always looking to broaden our network with other healthcare and medical office professionals.
Thanks – so, what else should our readers know about the Michigan Medical Billers Association (MMBA)?
The MMBA board is a committed group of 16 wonderful volunteers who are working professionals with years of experience in the field of medical billing, coding, auto, insurance, claims, compliance, government healthcare, revenue cycle, management, office administration, and consulting. As of right now, we are an all-women-run board of administrators, and we are very passionate about our jobs and the MMBA family. Our members are even more diverse than our board and cover a range of employees, business owners, managers, doctors, and even CEOs of large companies.
One thing we’d like everyone to know is that we are truly a unique organization in what we have to offer, especially at the price of our membership. To our knowledge, there is no other volunteer-based, member-driven medical and billing organization in the United States, and we are extremely proud of that! Another thing we’d like to share is we are MORE than just billers! We are a grand collection of medical reimbursement cycles, and our medical office management team is passionate about the medical billing and coding industry.
Our entire MMBA board collaborates for the most desirable outcomes, and we strive for compliance and excellence, all while keeping our members at the forefront. We believe in becoming certified, even though billers are not required to be, and encourage our participants to maintain those certificates through education and training, and that is what sets us apart from the crowd.
We want readers to know that there are a lot of opportunities out there for medical billing and coding education, and there are a lot of avenues to take regarding certification, accreditation, and licensing. Get the right education and find a great mentor opportunity like our MMBA. We can assist and help guide you into a long-lasting professional relationship and excellent career path that yields countless opportunities that you’ll glean experience. You can’t put a price on networking and involving yourself in our association.
Alyssa – MMBA Admin Assistant: “Personally, I wish I had known about MMBA years ago when I was going to high school and college. It would have been helpful to know someone or someplace, like this association, I could reach out to with questions that were difficult to find answers to navigating entry into this career path.”
If we knew you growing up, how would we have described you?
Alyssa – MMBA Admin Assistant: “I was always known as, “the polite kid,” and I wanted to be friends with everyone. I wasn’t the most organized young adult, but I feel I’ve found my grounding in life now as a mother, wife, and working professional here with MMBA.
I still love playing volleyball, like I did in my youth. (I was always the first one there and the last one to leave). I grew up on video games, which led me down the path of tabletop gaming, which combines my love for fantasy story creation, improvisation, theater, creative problem-solving, teamwork, and getting together with my life-long friends.”
Christy – MMBA Vice President: “I have always been an outgoing individual, raised by women who volunteered their time and talents with organizations they believed in. I enjoy volunteering my time at MMBA, creating lifelong friendships along the way. When not working or volunteering, I can be found reading and enjoying time with family and friends on our boat in beautiful waterways in Michigan.”
Pricing:
- 2024 Membership = $190 (Discounts are offered for 3 or more registering together.)
- Non-members =$100 for each individual event, (LIVE webinars, recorded webinars, and in-person meetings.)
- Member – Virtual Spring Expo, April 25th, 2024 = $100(**Delete these two lines please. The event will be over before your publication hits.)
- Non-Member – Virtual Spring Expo, April 25th, 2024 = $150
- September 19th, 2024 In-Person EXPOat Frankenmuth, MI. Price TBD (Discount for MMBA members attending!)
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.mmbaonline.org/aws/MMBA/pt/sp/home_page
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/michiganmedicalbillers/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MMBA1990
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/michigan-medical-billers-association/?viewAsMember=true
- Other: https://www.mmbaonline.org/aws/MMBA/pt/sp/membership
Image Credits
Branding by Elizabeth
