Member association founded in 1897 that represents osteopathic physicians (DOs). AOA serves as the primary certifying body for DOs and is the accrediting agency for all osteopathic medical colleges and health care facilities. AOA’s mission is to advance the philosophy and practice of osteopathic medicine by promoting excellence in education, research, and the delivery of quality, cost-effective health care within a distinct, unified profession. AOA stands firmly behind osteopathic physicians’ ethical and professional responsibilities to patients and the medical profession.

International professional organization of psychiatrists and related medical specialists that renders services for people with mental disease, mental retardation, and substance-related disorders.

Professional organization for advancement of psychology as a science and profession and promotes health, education, and human welfare.

National standards group that formed the ASTM Committee E31 on Health Care Informatics. It published general guidelines for development of standards for health care identifiers.

National association of anesthesiologists that maintains and publishes guidelines for coding anesthesia services.

Common computer coding system used for data communications that uses 128 numbers for a set of letters and characters, leaving 128 numbers as extras in an eight-bit byte. Programmers use the extra characters to create graphic characters, applicable to specific computers. The abbreviation is commonly pronounced “AS-key.”

Federal law that provides disabled employees equal treatment regarding the “terms, conditions, and privileges” of employment including the right to a harassment-free work environment.
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Passed by Congress in 1990, this act requires that reasonable accommodation be made in public accommodations, including the workplace, for those with physical or mental disability.

Process of the gradual retirement of an outstanding debt by making periodic payments over a stated period of time.

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UK: Periodical reduction in the value of a lease or other time-related asset until the asset is written down to nil. In insurance it is the ability to match the cost of cover to the actuarial probability of risk over time. Pension scheme actuaries spread an actuarial surplus or actuarial deficiency over an appropriate period.

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Writing off part of the value of an asset in a company’s books at intervals until the value of an asset is extinguished.

Fee charged for the medical services rendered to a patient by a provider and submitted or transmitted by the provider on an insurance claim form. When the provider is billing, this total charge is inserted in Block 28 of the CMS-1500 insurance claim form. When the hospital is billing, this total charge is inserted in Field 47 of the UB-04 insurance claim form.

In the Medicare program, the dollar amount of a medical service that has been denied and then appealed by the provider and patient to the insurance carrier for redetermination.