Certifications and Licensing for Medical Assistants in USA

We can define medical assistant as a vital element of any health services delivery team. These professionals possess relevant training and education to perform administrative duties of medical offices, examination room and clinical laboratory at physician office. The medical assistant also acts as connection between a patient and a doctor. It is also very essential to accomplish whole medical practice without any interruption.

In order to become eligible candidate for Medical Assistant License/Certification, all candidates are required to earn a graduate degree from accredited medical assistant training program. There are two major accrediting organizations recognized by U.S. Department of education. One is Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP) and another is the Accreditation Bureau of Health Education Schools (ABHES). Currently these organizations have accredited 700 Medical Assisting programs all over the USA.

Following are the three main licensing bodies for Medical Assistants in USA.

• The American Association of Medical Assistants (AAMA)



• The American Medical Technologists (AMT)



• The National Healthcareer Association (NHA)

The American Association of Medical Assistants (AAMA) is an important licensing certification for qualified medical assistant that provides certification, education, acknowledgement, opportunities to network with other professionals and broad scope to work as a professional. After pursuing this AAMA certification, candidates are awarded as Certified Medical Assistant. Moreover, all candidates are required to renew this credential every 5 years. Good thing is that AAMA re-certification exam is offered throughout the whole year. You can enroll and pay fee to renew yours certificate any time.

The American Medical Technologists (AMT) currently possesses over 60,000 certified members in allied healthcare profession. It is a nonprofit organization accredited by National Commission for Certifying Agencies (NCCA) and was founded in1939. AMT provides professional certification and memberships to well trained healthcare professionals to excel their careers. After earning this AMT certification professionals will be recognized as Certified Medical Assistants (CMA) or Registered Medical Assistant (RMA). This agency offer certifications in following healthcare fields: Medical Laboratory Technicians, Medical Technologists, Medical Assistants, Medical Lab Assistants, Phlebotomy Technicians, Medical Administrative Specialists, Allied Health Instructors, Dental Assistants and Clinical Laboratory Consultants. Moreover, all candidates need to renew their CMA or RNA certification after every 3 years.

The National Healthcareer Association (NHA) was launched in 1989. NHA certified professionals are recognized as Certified Clinical Medical Assistant (CCMA). National Healthcareer Association (NHA) provides certification in ten allied healthcare professions. These careers include Pharmacy Technician Certification (CPhT), EKG Technician (CET), Phlebotomy Technician Certification (CPT), Clinical Medical Assistant Certification (CCMA), Medical Laboratory Assistant Certification (CMLA), Operating Room Surgical Technician Certification (CORST), Patient Care Technician Certification (CPCT/CPCA/CNT), Certified Medical Administrative Assistant (CMAA), Certified Billing and Coding Specialist (CBCS) and Certified Electronic Health Record Specialist (CEHRS%u2122). Almost all allied healthcare careers require hands on skills to treat patients. NHA helps professionals to enhance their capabilities by providing proper training in their respective fields. You can work anywhere in USA with this NHA certification. Currently there are 200,000 individuals affiliated with NHA all over the USA. All candidates are required to renew their NHA certification after every 2 years.

These licensing and certifications for Medical Assistants in USA enhance their capabilities and help them to advance their career to medical office manager. Working experience teach them to progress in healthcare industry. More serious candidates join on-campus or online health sciences degree programs to become a professional in any specific field.