Erin Hyden - CCS - CPC - Midwest Healthcare Reimbursement Services "Taught" a 12-week course in medical coding @ $62.50 per week. $450 for books/ $300 for exam/ Every student failed the exam. Leo Indiana

kim never has or will do any business with erin. KIm is the ex wife of erin's husband. she is angry that someone else got her meal ticket, after he divorced kim. kim was proven negligent in court for not caring for her own child. she was too busy partying to care. she put her child in unhealthy and dangerous situations. she did not even show up to any of the custody hearings. she is just angry because she was using the child support to get drunk and high and with loss of custody, she has nobody to support her lifestyle. she is a canadian citizen anyway, and none of the local officials from the courts to the f.b.i can stand her. she has perjured herself so many times in her statements that if she were an american citizen, should be doing jail time. you notice nothing was specific in her complaint . it was just meant to discredit. the only thing it really does is show how little class she has.

Kimberly,

Whoever you are, i am being falsely accused of writing your comment and would appreciate you responding to this and being a little more clear on your identity. I have had enough problems with this woman and her husband and would like to stay clear away from the drama. Any feedback would be appreciated.  Thank you.

Kimmy Canadian;)

I had the displeasure of having Erin contact me to enter into a business arrangement with her.

Because of her RAMBLING email we because immediately suspicious that she wasnt wrapped to tight.

After a few exchanges in in email... we decided not to do business with her.

She wrote several more bizarre letters, and thank God disappeared.

If in doubt ...google away. This girl is clearly off balance.

I'd be happy to forward her letters for all of you to see.

There are several, and not flattering on her behalf.

I personally know this woman.. yes chronic complainer, thinks the world owes her something. i am sorry this woman had to slander you in the same way she has done others. Sounds like you have a good program going on for those who are willing to put the effort in!

I was a student taking the class from Erin Hyden and I think what this woman has said about her is horrible. Erin is a good person and is a great teacher and she teaches these classes so that moms like me who want to stay at home can and make a good living. My husband and I were struggling with one income and 3 kids and I needed to go back to work but I didn't want to get a job at mcdonalds, I actually wanted to be at home with my kids and make good money and avoid having to stuff envelopes...lol. My husband and I saved up the money for me to take this course and Erin allows all her students to pay by the week and it's a small amount only $62.50 a week. I checked out going to vocational schools to take this class which didn't include the preparation for my certification exam and the lowest amount I found was over $11,000.00 and financial aid won't cover the whole thing even in my situation. I would have had to come up with almost $2500 out of my own pocket and they wanted it up front or in 2 or 3 payments and I didn't have that kind of money which is why Erin's class appealed to me.

We learned so much in that 12 weeks and 2 weeks were dedicated just to preparing for our certification. Erin and Kristie (the other instructor) helped us so much in groups and one on one and were available anytime we had questions outside of class. She broke everything down in a way that was easy to learn and I have a friend who was taken by one of those mail order medical billing classes and she spent over $2000 and got no coding training at all and I was helping her just a couple weeks into my class. This class was not mail order or correspondence - we got one on one instruction by nationally certified teachers and I understand the class before mine had trouble with the test but the AAPC changed it half way through the year and that's not Erin's fault. We had up to date materials for this year and I passed my test the first time and I think we only had one person in our class that didn't and Erin is still working with her. Erin and Kristie are both very dedicated and there is no way that if I took a class even at a vocational school that I could call my instructors at home or contact them outside of class hours. Erin has even had people over to her home for study groups at no charge - she and Kristie were available to us anytime.

Cindy DeGroff (the lady who wrote that nasty letter) is just being mean because maybe she did the wrong things quitting her job during class and OMG who is dumb enough to cash out their 401K to live off of before they have a sure thing waiting for them - like a job after they get their certification? I don't think quitting your job during school is a good idea unless your husband makes enough to take care of you or you have a hefty trustfund to sustain your butt until you get another job in your new profession. Blaming other people and trashing someones reputation because you're bitter is really ridiculous but I just wanted to write this so that if anyone sees this nasty letter that this lady has put on here that they will take it from one of Erin's actual students and there are many of us who love her and what she's doing for other people......ERIN'S CLASS IS NOT A SCAM - IT'S LEGITIMATE!!!

Erin is an awesome person and teacher and is doing great things for moms and dads who just want to be able to make money during these hard times and be with their kids and that is the truth :) Trashing her just shows that Cindy DeGroff is a bitter woman who needs to either get her butt in gear and pass her test or just shutup!

first of all, i met this lady who wrote this complaint and she is a hothead...next, erin's literature states that there is no accreditation. (THIS IS LIKE A BOOT CAMP) i am a coder and also have a degree in health information technology from a "accredited" college and can assure you that NONE of them will teach you the coding skills needed to pass a certification exam..so accreditation in this sense is a misnomer and is only used in this sense to undermine a legitimate person with a desire to teach things to those who have or would not have the chance to learn...the $300 dollars for the test did not go to erin hyden but to the A.A.P.C...the things erin shared were right on the money. i do know that not just her students but many who have recently taken the test were at a disadvantage only in that the A.A.P.C changed the format of the test without letting anyone know.. this caused confusion to me and others on test day and most were so confused that they ran out of time. erin does not make the tests or grade them. if you were to poll any of her classmates you would see that she is up on her word to help them prepare for a retake..paying for a class does not pass you for any test or you could just BUY a certification..the 2 major certification companies suggest working in coding at "least" 2 years!!! before even attempting the test...i see it as a testimony to her teaching methods that even with the confusion of the format change that her students, most who had never seen a coding book before; passed 2 out of the three sections...that is amazing...i have seen classes reaching into the thousands of dollars that do not touch on what she is teaching and even those are designed for seasoned coders...i saw a response from someone else on here about medical billing scams...they might want to educate themselves and others of the difference between "billing" and "coding". ..Billing refers to the actual overall process of a patient's charges. billing can be learned in a tech school in about a month, i know because i have done that. you cannot just grab a book and be a coder....erin got into this so she could be a stay at home mom and saw all the scams trying to lure disabled,economically depressed and single parents. she wanted to help other people do what she is now able to do. she is a good teacher, she charges a fraction of what others charge and she really has a desire to help others. i just think that this one lady who went off, shows her own true colors,not just by lashing out but to outright lie on several fronts because she is frustrated with her own life and is not happy unless she is hurting someone else..a person like that will never be happy no matter where they go..

federal trade commission website has a full list of work at schemes and Medical billing is one of them

read why the FTC SAYS TO STAY AWAY
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/invest/inv09.shtm
EXCERPT FROM FTC
The ads lure consumers with promises of substantial income working from home full- or part-time - "no experience required." They direct consumers to call a toll-free number for more information.

If you call, a sales representative will entice you to sign up by telling you that the processing of medical claims is a lucrative business, that doctors are eager for help with electronic claims processing, and that you - even without any experience - can do this work from the comfort of your home.

Medical billing scammers charge a fee of hundreds, or even thousands, of dollars. In exchange, they claim to provide everything you supposedly need to launch your medical billing business: the software program to process the claims and a list of potential clients.

But the reality is that few consumers who pay for medical billing opportunities find clients or make any money, let alone earn the promised substantial income. Competition in the medical billing market is fierce, especially for those who are new to it. Many doctors' offices process their own medical claims. Doctors who contract out their medical billing often use established firms, not individuals working from home.

My name is Erin Hyden and I am the sole proprietor of MHRS, LLC or Midwest Healthcare Reimbursement Serivces. I am not an accredited University or scholastic entity and have never claimed to be. I have been teaching at the college level for 5 years and have held numerous prep classes for medical coding. I started this business to help single moms be able to have a legitimate career choice to be able to stay at home with their kids. Medical coding is a wonderful way to do that and my partner and I are both single mothers and have helped many people in their pursuit to medical coding at home.

I held my first class sponsored by my business this past spring/summer and Cindy DeGroff who has annonymously posted these accusations against me was one of my 9 students. She has stated in her false internet post against me several things to which I would like to respond to and please note that I am not trying to conceal my identity in any way as I have absolutely nothing to hide as she obviously does by calling herself Peeeooo'd in Harlan, IN.

She has made several false statements and I want to address them in the order she has written them:

*The students were well informed that my course was not accredited by a University, scholastic entity or by the AAPC and/or AHIMA. Being that this was my first class through my business I have to go through application processes which is why the students got the course at such a discounted rate. This was not brought up by a question from another student during orientation as if I had something to hide. These words were clearly spelled out and explained in the student agreements that each and every student including Ms. DeGroff had to read and sign;

"I have read, understand and agree to the following: Midwest Healthcare Reimbursement Services (MHRS, LLC) is a privately owned and operated business sponsoring an independent adult educational program and is in no way making any claims to be affiliated or accredited with AHIMA, AAPC, or any other college, university, technical school, hospital, medical practice or healthcare partnership. Although students are provided job leads, resume support and certification preparation to achieve their individual goals, there is no guarantee offering passing grades for testing, certifications, job placement as the results progress and subsequent employment ar eentirely up to the individual's comprehension and abilities attained from the course and studies provided.

....and I have Ms. DeGroff's signed student agreement. This is not printed in small lettering at the bottom of a page as to go unread or unnoticed by the students. It is in bold type and takes up more than half of a page because due to liability issues it had to be known upfront that we were providing independent adult education services - just like taking a class to learn quilting or karate....I made it perfectly clear to all of them that I was not accredited.

*The books used were purchased by the students through me at a discount rate but they were free to purchase the books on their own. I made no money off of the books and provided them with samples of the books and a list if they wanted to purchase the books on their own. The price of the class Ms. DeGroff stated was correct, it was 12 weeks and I allowed them to break down the payments over the 12 weeks to help with not having to have the money all at once since it was an out of pocket expense - no financial aid, etc. The total for my class if the books were purchased through me at the discount was $1200 total.

*Ms. DeGroff states falsely that there was a final payment made to me for $300 to cover the cost of the CPC exam. THIS IS FALSE. Everyone who took the course and wanted to take the CPC exam paid for and scheduled it on their own. I am not authorized by the AAPC to take payments and it can be proven for every student that took the exam that they made those payments directly to the AAPC - I took NO money for the exam only for the class I gave.

*As for the exam - 9 students took the exam and 2 student passed the first time. The AAPC allows a retake at no charge. Once I realized that so many students did not pass the first time I asked them to give me a copy of their individual letters from the AAPC to see what concepts they had failed and that I would work with them individually at no charge to help prepare for the retake exam. Any student who wanted help - I helped.

With so many students failing the exam I inquired with the AAPC as to the exam prep book which is the book we used in class. This book has a mock exam and has helped many people prepare for the exam itself. I was informed that with the new ownership and changes going on at the AAPC as a result that the prep books were published in Dec 07 for the following year 2008 exam. After the books were published, due to new ownership, the exam format was changed early 2008 but it was too late to change the mock tests in the exam prep books. This was the reason for the confusion when my students went to take the test. The test they were prepped for was changed and therefore when they went in and the test format was so different - they were thrown off and had a hard time. This is no one's fault but once I found out this information, I passed it on and started a game plan for them.

This was told to every student and that included Cindy DeGroff. I told the students that I was going to get the 2009 books that were coming out Dec 08 and review them to see if it had the new format for the test and once that was accomplished I would help them study at no charge. I made it very clear that I could not do anything until the new books came out but that the books would also be at my expense. Cindy contacted me harrassing me over Thankgiving and Christmas and each and every time I told her the same thing - my hands were tied until those books were available on Dec 27, 2008 and these are all verifiable facts.

Cindy DeGroff worked in a factory with another friend who took the class. During the first week of class Cindy revealed that she has problems sitting close to other students and wanted to move to an area where she could have room around her and not be in other student's space. She was accomodated. She was also having trouble learning at the same pace as the other students and was taken out of class to have one on one personal training by one of my other instructors. Cindy stated that she had clostrophobia and anxiety/panic attacks and being away from the other students helped her focus and be more comfortable. This was totally fine and we accomodated her on a daily basis. The AAPC has provisions for candidates taking the exam that have anxiety or other mental/physical disabilities and applications have to be filled out, etc. When Cindy took the exam - I was a proctor and she got so upset by the woman sitting next to her too closely that she gave up half way through the exam and didn't finish because she couldn't concentrate. That is when I suggested to her that if her anxiety/clostrophobia was effecting her test taking abilities that if she got a note from her doctor and petitioned the AAPC - she might be able to get a special test site set up on her own so that she could have a good chance of concentrating and finishing the exam without the distractions that make it impossible for to finish. I was not putting her down in any way - I was trying to help. I have known others with the same problem that have gotten help from the AAPC disabilites provisions and I myself suffer from anxiety/panic attacks and know what that is like.

The bottom line here is that Cindy DeGroff, 4 weeks into class, quit her factory job to study medical coding full time. She cashed in her 401K to live on until she could finish the class and take the exam. I never encouraged her to do that and was not aware she was thinking about it. She is a grown woman of more mature age than I (I'm 33) living paycheck to paycheck with her boyriend and grown children and is definitely of sound enough mind and responsibility to know that there are risks when quitting your job and cashing out your retirement account, especially when you don't have the money saved up to do that. There was no job promised to her through my class only the help of job leads once her certification was completed. I didn't promise any type of certification guarantee, etc. and yet she, being an adult, made the decision to go ahead and quit her current job before passing her certification and finding other employment in the healthcare field. I did tell her in an email that I would not be held responsible for her poor choices and I don't think that it's fair for her to slander me due to her misfortune. She emailed me that she had to take a job at Starbucks because of the bad economy and my horrible class, etc. The economy has hit us all hard and being an adult I have to take responsibility for myself and make the choices that my family depends upon and Cindy DeGroff should not be the exception to the rule.

I did not quit her job for her. I did not cash out her 401K. I did not make her promises of money falling from the sky once my course was completed. I did not guarantee her score on the exam even though she has problems taking tests in an enclosed environment. I did promise to prep her for her certification exam and teach her the coding and medical terminology concepts she would need to pass the exam and I did. I went above and beyond what any University would do - they don't even tell you about the certification exam half the time and definitely don't help you pass unless you pay extra. If you price out just the certification exam portion of my class at a University you would pay at least $1500. Taking a medical coding program is close to $6000 or more. I was honestly trying to help those ladies that took my class and am still helping the ones who have been patient and stuck with me until I could get the new materials available to help them. I have 5 students to date that have passed the exam and am prepping two more for their retakes and am hopeful they will pass. I have one student that has relocated and is not pursuing the exam anymore due to a new upcoming marriage and then I have Cindy DeGroff who despite her nasty words is still more than welcome to be prepped for the retake exam at no cost to her if she desires. I have tried to contact her several times and she has blocked my emails and has changed her phone number.

Cindy DeGroff is more than welcome to contact me anytime if she wants help to retake her exam with the new study materials I have obtained at my expense. I challenge her to contact me, no hard feelings, and study for her exam so that she can better her situation vs. wallow in self pity and blame everyone else for her bad choices and lot in life.