CHCSP study guide
CHCSP · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
The Certified Healthcare Compliance Specialist Professional (CHCSP) is a professional credential for people who build, run, or work inside healthcare compliance programs - compliance officers and analysts, billing and coding managers, privacy and security staff, internal auditors, and practice or revenue-cycle leaders who carry compliance duties alongside other roles. It signals that the holder can reason across the whole compliance lifecycle rather than in one silo: program governance and board reporting, regulatory risk assessment, coding and reimbursement integrity, HIPAA privacy and security, fraud, waste, and abuse rules, auditing and monitoring, workforce education, and the investigation and corrective-action process when something goes wrong. The CHCSP study guide has 8 sections and about 3,184 words.
01Compliance Program Structure and Governance
This domain tests how a healthcare organization builds and governs an effective compliance program: who owns it, how authority and reporting lines work, what the governing body must do, and how the program is documented, resourced, and made operational. The OIG seven elements are the organizing framework: written policies and procedures; a designated compliance officer and compliance committee; effective training and education; effective lines of communication; internal monitoring and auditing; enforcement and discipline; and prompt response and corrective action.
422 words, about 2 min02Regulatory Compliance and Risk Assessment
This domain tests whether you can identify applicable healthcare laws, assess risk systematically, and convert findings into controlled, monitored processes. Questions often ask what a risk assessment must include and how regulatory change should be operationalized.
400 words, about 2 min03Coding, Billing, and Reimbursement Compliance
This domain tests whether claims are supported by documentation, coded correctly, billed under the right payer rules, and corrected promptly when errors are found. Expect questions on modifiers, edits, medical necessity, overpayments, and charge capture.
405 words, about 2 min04Privacy, Security, and HIPAA
This domain tests the HIPAA Privacy, Security, and Breach Notification Rules, plus related federal and state obligations. Questions often turn on whether a use or disclosure is permitted, what safeguards are required, and when notification is triggered.
431 words, about 2 min05Fraud, Waste, and Abuse
This domain tests the federal fraud and abuse laws that shape healthcare arrangements and claims: the False Claims Act, Anti-Kickback Statute, Stark Law, Civil Monetary Penalties, and exclusion authorities. Expect fact patterns requiring you to spot prohibited remuneration, false claims, or improper inducements.
433 words, about 2 min06Auditing and Monitoring
This domain tests how compliance teams design audits, select samples, measure findings, and monitor corrective action. Questions often ask what makes an audit defensible and how findings should be reported and remediated.
354 words, about 2 min07Compliance Education and Training
This domain tests how to design, deliver, document, and evaluate compliance training. The exam favors role-based, risk-driven training that changes behavior, not attendance-only annual videos.
366 words, about 2 min08Investigations, Enforcement, and Corrective Action
This domain tests how to receive, triage, investigate, resolve, and remediate compliance concerns, and how to respond to government enforcement. Expect questions on privilege, documentation, overpayment, self-disclosure, discipline, and corrective action plans.
373 words, about 2 min