FAQ

MedCA is not a school.

You can call the office at 516 868 6800 to order a new certificate and ID card. The replacement cost is $39. Please allow two weeks for processing and shipping.

A MedCA certificate is valid for two years. Upon the expiration of the certificate, you will need to recertify. (See Recertification on the home page.)

You will receive your certificate within two weeks following MedCA’s receipt of required documentation and the completed exam.

Study guides can be purchased on MedCA’s home page and downloaded as a PDF file for immediate use. A spiral-bound hard copy may be purchased by calling the MedCA office at 516 868 6800.

You can take a MedCA exam at any school affiliated with MedCA, at a MedCA testing facility, or at your place of employment upon approval by a MedCA associate. Call our office at 516-868-6800 to find out the nearest testing site in your area or email us at admin@medca.us

You may take a certification exam if you are at least 18 years of age, possess a high-school diploma or the equivalent, and meet one of the following requirements:

• Graduated from an approved training program (proof of completion required)
• Have at least one year of work experience (two years of experience for medical assistants) and be currently working in the corresponding field (Qualification by Experience form, which
  can be found on the MedCA website, required) This option, Qualification by Experience for medical assistants is not available in South Carolina.

Depending on a subject, an exam consists of either 100 or 120 multiple-choice questions, and the allocated time is either 2 hours or 2-1/2 hours.

If you passed the exam, you will receive your certificate from your school or directly by postal mail from MedCA.
If you fail the exam, you will be notified by postal mail from MedCA

Payment may vary depending on the school you attended. Some schools will ask you to provide a money order payable to MedCA for the cost of the exam; this money order will be sent to the MedCA offices for processing with your exam. Some schools prefer their students to pay the school for the exam, so you may need to contact your school to find out the form of payment they require.

Yes. You may reschedule or cancel your exam. You must contact your school to inform them of the cancellation.

No. In order to qualify for an exam, the necessary requirements must be met. For all exam requirements, click on Available Certifications and select the field in which you are interested.

MedCA provides reasonable and appropriate accommodations in accordance with the Americans With Disabilities Act (A.D.A, 1990) for individuals who have documented proof of a disability. The candidate must request and demonstrate the need for accommodation. Special accommodations will be granted on a case-by-case basis, as required by law.

The ADA regulations define a person with a disability as someone with a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities. MedCA requires that individuals with disabilities complete the Special Accommodations Request form available on its website under the Forms tab.

This documentation is necessary to allow accommodations to be specifically matched with the identified functional limitation in order to provide equal access to test functions for all examinees. Certain disabilities or conditions may be considered so essential to the professional practice in the field that some accommodations for eligibility or testing may not be available, as determined by MedCA.

Some of MedCA’s certification examinations are available in Spanish. Whereas candidates are not required to provide proof of literacy to take exams, no language assistance will be provided.

Candidates from countries other than the US will need to have those requirements completed outside of the US evaluated by a recognized assessment firm that determines US equivalency. All such analysis will be done at the expense of the candidate.

No. The fee is required to take the exam, regardless of the outcome. In the event that you do fail the exam, you may retake it, but you will be required to pay the exam fee again.

You may use the Quick Contact text box on the website to request information on the schools in your area with which MedCA is affiliated with. Be sure to include where you are located and the areas to which you are willing to travel.

• To keep your certificate active, it is required that you recertify. It is good to start the recertification process about a month before the expiration date.
• If your certificate expires, you can no longer use it. Recertification is possible within one year following the expiration of a certificate, for $149.
• If it has been more than one year, you must pay an additional $35 reinstatement fee. If a certificate has expired more than three years, you must retake the original certification exam.
• The recertification package consists of three continuing education studies, each of which corresponds to three Continuing Education Units (CEUs) and thirty multiple-choice questions. The passing grade is 70%, which means that you must answer at least twenty-one (21) questions correctly to pass.
• Continuing Education can also be achieved by obtaining outside credits, meaning you do not need to go through MedCA to obtain continuing education credits. You must have at least nine (9) credits of outside study to obtain recertification by MedCA. In order for outside credits to be accepted the certificate holder must submit the course they attended, the name of the facility attended, the dates and attendance record which shows the number of hours. Please allow 30 days’ review time for a decision by MedCA on the acceptability of outside credits.
• Upon passing the recertification exam, you will receive a new full-size (8 ½” x 11” ) certificate and a laminated wallet size ID-card by postal mail within 2-3 weeks.

See recertification area for more details.
Note: Cost of re-certification is $149.

Yes. You may return a study guide within 15 days of receipt if you have changed your mind and will not be taking the corresponding allied-health exam. Just mail the study guide back to MedCA at your own expense, and we will refund your payment, less a $10 restocking fee. Please note that we cannot issue a refund for an electronic copy, nor may you return a study guide after taking an exam or a study guide that has been written in.

Online testing is available at MedCA-affiliated schools that choose to test this way. If your school is testing online, contact your school for instructions.

Your certificate number will appear on the full-page certificate you receive. If you would like your number for interviews or job applications before your certificate arrives, you can select Verify Certification at the top of MedCA’s home page. Your certificate number will be sent to the email address you provide within 24 business hours. Remember to check your SPAM folder if you do not receive a timely response.

If you completed an allied health program, but never took the certification exam, you may still be able to do so. You must have completed the program no more than five years prior to taking the exam, and you will need proof of the related course completion.