Frequently asked

No. CFPO is the credential and the examination — Certified in Federal Payer Operations. CIFPO is the organization that issues it, keeps the registry and enforces the code of ethics. A person holds CFPO; nobody holds CIFPO.

No. CFPO is not accredited by the National Commission for Certifying Agencies or any comparable body. Accreditation is a separate process that examines the certifying organization itself, and CIFPO has not applied for it. CIFPO intends to pursue it once the holder population and administration history make an application meaningful, and will say so when it is done.

A certification. A certificate documents that you completed a course; a certification asserts that you met a published standard, measured by an examination independent of any particular course, and can be revoked. CFPO is the second kind. It is, however, a certification from an organization that is not yet independent of a preparation provider — see the governance page.

No. Pathway A requires documented work experience and no coursework at all. Pathway B accepts any preparation program covering the six domains in at least 40 hours, from any provider. CIFPO neither requires nor recommends a specific course, and DutyPath tuition does not include the examination fee.

Not at present. CFPO is not listed in the Army COOL catalogue and CIFPO is not an approved provider under Credentialing Assistance, MyCAA, the GI Bill or VET TEC. Candidates should treat the examination fee as self-pay or employer-sponsored. CIFPO will not describe any benefit as available until the approval exists in writing.

It does not compete with them. Those credentials cover code assignment, credentialing and provider enrollment. CFPO covers federal payer authorization — the sequence that determines whether care is approved and what documentation has to travel with it. Many holders will carry both.

The first testing window runs January 11 – February 26, 2027. Applications open November 2, 2026.

The pass mark for outline v1.0 is 60 of 75 scored items, a criterion-referenced standard set by the standards panel at publication. Scores are reported as raw counts; there is no scaled score. After the first 100 administrations a modified-Angoff study with practicing subject-matter experts re-sets the mark if the evidence supports it, with 60 days' notice of any change.

You receive a domain-level score report showing where you fell short. You may re-sit after thirty days, twice in any twelve-month period, at the re-examination fee. There is no limit on total attempts across years.

Yes. CIFPO provides reasonable accommodations at no cost to candidates with a documented disability or qualifying medical condition — extended time, additional breaks, assistive technology and others. Request it on the application with supporting documentation; CIFPO decides within ten business days. See the examination page.

No. The examination tests what a practitioner must know without looking it up. It contains no code-selection items, so no code books are needed either.

Yes. The public registry is open and requires no account. It returns name, status, issue date and expiry only — no scores, no contact details, no employment information — and it does not notify you.

No. CFPO confers no authority to practice, bill, or represent anyone before a federal program. It is evidence of measured knowledge, nothing more. Anyone telling you a credential unlocks a legal capability in this field is misinforming you.

Renew every two years with twenty continuing education hours, at least twelve on federal payer programs, an ethics reaffirmation, and the $150 fee. Hours can come from any provider. See recertification.

Yes, for a substantiated breach of the code of ethics, a material false statement, or disclosure of examination content — after written notice, thirty days to respond, a decision by panel members not involved in the finding, and a right of appeal. Revocation is shown in the registry. See discipline.

CIFPO was founded by Brenda Hyche Mercer, who also founded DutyPath LLC, a preparation provider. CIFPO is a separate legal entity but is not independent of that relationship and says so on every page. A governing board with a majority of members from outside DutyPath is intended but not yet seated. See About CIFPO.

Apply on the item writers page. You need at least three years of hands-on federal payer authorization work, current practice, and no role selling CFPO preparation. Writers are paid per accepted item and may not sit the examination during service.

No. CIFPO and CFPO are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Department of Defense, the Defense Health Agency, TRICARE, CHAMPVA, or any of their contractors. References to those programs describe their published rules and imply no relationship.