Is New York State a good place to build a career as a medical biller and coder?

If you have been following the news from New York, things do not look too rosy at first glance. On January 19, New York Governor David Paterson released his proposal for a budget that will attempt to close a projected $7.4 billion deficit for the 2010-11 fiscal year.

According to the Greater New York Hospital Association, that budget “contains major cuts and taxes for health care providers” that will put construction of new hospitals on hold. But the issue is more complex than that, for several reasons:

-     First, Governor Paterson is also trying to pass a new bill that will raise $650 million through new taxes on the sale of cigarettes and sugared beverages. If that bill passes, those funds will be earmarked for improving public health – and that spending could spur job growth for medical information processors.

-     Second, Governor Paterson recently announced that he will not seek re-election. That might not impact the passage of the new bill mentioned just above, but it does throw the long-term prospects for healthcare funding into uncertainty.

A Little Perspective

The 2009 Federal Issues Book: New York Hospital and Health System Priorities, a downloadable report from the Healthcare Association of New York State (HANYS), helps put these recent events in context. According to HANYS, New York State’s 300+ hospitals have continued to offer many opportunities for healthcare professionals.

-     New York hospitals employed 357,780 full-time workers in 2009.

-     New York hospitals also created an additional 671,730 support jobs throughout the state in 2009.

-     New York hospitals paid $26.8 billion in direct wages and fringe benefits to employees in 2009.

-     Every year, New York hospitals provide 2.6 million inpatient hospital stays, 44 million outpatient visits (including 7.9 million emergency room visits), and deliver more than 250,000 babies. Read the rest of this entry »

You probably know the two types of resume formats – chronological and functional.  The question is, which format will work hardest to get you a job as a medical biller and coder

In most cases, it depends on where you are in your career.

• A chronological format could work best if you have already started your career as a medical biller and coder, because it highlights the jobs that you have held in the past.

• A functional format could be your best choice if you are seeking your first job, because it emphasizes the skills you have learned in school, not your past job experience.

There are other resume formats too. If your background includes both previous jobs and skills you learned in school, you may need to create a mixed-format resume that presents both effectively.

How do you decide which format is best for you? Here are some excellent online sources of advice that can help you make the best choice:

• MSN Careers offers an extensive library of free articles about writing resumes, including one that helps you format a resume if you have held a number of short-term jobs.

• HowToWriteaResume.net gives advice on choosing the format that is best for you, along with templates you can use to build your resume online. Note: Some services on this site require payment.

• ResumeResource.com lets you review about 200 sample resumes in different formats, including one designed for people who are changing careers.

And if you’re procrastinating about writing your resume . . .

“Five Tips for Better Resume Writing,” an article Dummies.Com, offers an upbeat overview of the process that can help you jumpstart your writing and get started today.

As we mentioned in a previous post, Five Reasons Why Medical Billing and Coding is Booming, General Electric is one of several major corporations who have invested in creating the best, and most efficient, system of electronic medical records (EMR). The video below was released by General Electric to provide a glimpse into one of its EMR systems at Westchester Medical Group.  Dr. Simeon Schwartz discusses the benefits of digital health records to individual patients, as well as to the American healthcare system as a whole.

Do you have any insight into any system of electronic medical records? Let us know about your experiences!

You’ve asked professors and professional contacts to write letters of recommendation for you. But how can you be sure that those letters are doing all they can to help you land jobs?

You’ll find some great advice on this topic in the article “How to Obtain and Use References and Recommendation Letters” by Maureen Crawford Hentz, writing on the QuintCareers.com Website.

Here are just three nuggets of Hentz’s wisdom:

-     Ask indirectly. Hentz recommends emailing your possible referrers to ask for references, not speaking with them directly. The reason? An email allows them to gracefully turn you down if they want. Getting a “no, thank you” is preferable to getting a lukewarm recommendation from someone who didn’t really want to write it for you.

-     Don’t ask for references at the last minute. Instead, collect letters of reference over time, from people who have good things to say about you. When you build a portfolio of references this way, you can later pick and choose the best of them.

-     Supply documentation. If you are asking for a reference for a specific job, give your referrer your resume and a description of the position you are applying for. Also point out how your abilities match the job. That allows your referrer to write a letter that spells out why you are a great fit for the job.

For more good advice on getting references . . .

Watch “Tips for Collecting Job References,” a video from consultant Tine Buechler on YouTube.

If you are thinking about taking a course in Medical Billing and Coding or are already in a course or working in the field, then you should be thinking about becoming a Certified Professional Coder with the American Academy of Professional Coders.

Certifications allow medical billers and coders to validate their knowledge and expertise in various medical environments. It will also help you earn approximately 20% more than non-credentialed coders, according to the American Academy of Professional Coders.

These credentials are nationally recognized by employers, physician societies and government organizations.

Being credentialed may also give you and your employer more confidence in your ability to capture lost revenue for the payment risk and protect their practice from unfavorable audits.

As a credentialed billing and coder, doors may open up for you faster in:

•  Physician offices or groups

•  Hospital-associated physician offices or groups

•  Health system-associated physician offices or groups

•  Home health agencies

• Physician groups at a university and or in a teaching setting

•  Compliance auditors or forensic auditors of physician claims

•  Physician billing services

•  Ambulatory Surgery Centers (ASC)

•  Outpatient hospital services not reimbursed by Ambulatory Patient Category (APCs) groups

•  If you are a consultant, educator, legal counsel, physician or other care-giver seeking a credential to demonstrate your command of outpatient medical billing and coding for physician services.

So get certified today if you are working in the field. If you are taking a course, be sure to take the certification exam shortly after your course is complete. There are also preparatory classes offered to help you prepare for the certification examination. Do it for yourself. This is a great accomplishment and will bring much more value to your degree.

Which office chairs provide the back support you need during long workdays at your desk? Here are some must-have features that are recommended by Chiropractor Dr. Rodney K. Lefler on Spine-Health.com:

• The seat height should adjust easily, allowing you to sit with your feet flat on the floor and your arms even with the desk surface.

• The seat should tilt, and should be deep enough to let you sit with your back against the backrest.

• There should be a lumbar support that adjusts for both height and depth, so you can find a setting that supports the inward curve of your lower back.

• The backrest should be adjustable for both angle and height.

• The fabric should be breathable, and padding should be thick enough to provide comfort during long periods of use.

• Armrests should be adjustable up and down, so your arms can rest comfortably on them while your shoulders are relaxed.

• Swiveling should be easy, so you can turn easily to reach different articles in your work area.

For more information on picking the desk chair that is best for your back, watch Watch Your Back, a video from Spine-Health.com.

Those are the basics. But which chairs fill the bill? You’ll find reviews of popular models online at ConsumerSearch.com and at Galt Home.

Buying a good chair for a great price . . .

Consider buying a used desk chair. Due to the current wave of company downsizings, lots of used office furniture is currently available – some at liquidation prices. To find a company that sells used office equipment in your area, visit the Yellow Pages online or search online for “used office equipment.”

After hours of working on your computer do you find that your wrists are sore and tired? If you are planning on entering a career in medical billing and coding, wrist fatigue could be a huge factor in preventing you from working efficiently. Medical Billing and Coding Blog has outlined the key medical problem associated with wrist fatigue, Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.

What is Carpal Tunnel Syndome?

According to WebMD, Carpal tunnel syndrome “occurs when the median nerve becomes pinched due to swelling of the nerve or tendons or both. The median nerve provides sensation to the palm side of the thumb, index, middle fingers, as well as the inside half of the ring finger and muscle power to the thumb. When this nerve becomes pinched, numbness, tingling and sometimes pain of the affected fingers and hand may occur and radiate into the forearm.”

What causes Carpal Tunnel Syndrome and what are its symptoms?

While there are several possible causes of the disorder, normally it springs from repeated movement of the arms, wrists or hands, often times by typing at a computer for long hours. If you work long days on a computer and your hands and/or fingers feel tingly or numb at night, or if you experience a burning or shooting pain up your forearm, you could have a case of carpal tunnel syndrome.

How to Prevent Carpal Tunnel Syndrome?

According to WebMD, to prevent this wrist fatigue disorder you can:

• Sleep with your wrists straight or use a splint.
• Keep your wrists straight when using tools but try not to use splints.
• Avoid flexing and extending your wrists repeatedly.
• Perform conditioning and stretching exercises.

How Can I Cure Carpal Tunnel Syndrome? Read the rest of this entry »

In this field we talk a lot about HIPAA, and many call it “the privacy act” or “security rule”.  Its true intention is the portability of the insurance coverage in order to provide continuity of coverage for workers and their families when they lose or change jobs.

The law covers several items related to safety and security of a patient’s information – things like responsibilities, verification, validation and training, amongst others.

One area that is worth  mentioning is Safeguards; this is the ensuring that confidential information remains secure.

All entities must have in place appropriate safeguards to ensure the protection of a person’s confidential information.  These security measures as described by HIPAA include administrative, technical and physical safeguards.  And many times we assume these are taking place. But do we really focus and protect our patient’s information on a continual basis?

Administrative safeguards require us to verify a patient and or their due representative.  Do we have signatures on file? Do we verify these every time we’re asked to provide information to persons other than the patient?  A good idea would be to include in the patient’s record a photocopy of their identification; this ID should be state issued. Read the rest of this entry »

“Hot Jobs: Medical Coders Are in Great Demand,” an article by Scott Andron in The Miami Herald, reports encouraging news about the growing need for medical billers and coders in Florida.  “Health information management might be for you, and a job as a medical coder might be the place to start,” Andron writes.

The Miami Herald is not the only publication that is optimistic about opportunities for medical billers and coders in Florida. According to Orlandojobs.com’s Employment Outlook for Central Florida report, healthcare jobs are among the fastest growing employment opportunities in Florida. The report points to fast-growing opportunities for physical therapists, registered nurses, licensed practical nurses, medical coders and medical billers.

What’s driving this growth? One significant force is the construction of new medical facilities in the state. One of the more promising could be the planned “medical city” in Orlando’s Lake Nona area. According to a recent article in The Orlando Business Journal, the development of this medical and research park has the potential to create 30,000 high-paying jobs in just a decade.

So, is Florida a good place to start and grow your career as a medical biller and coder? It certainly seems to be. We’ll be watching the trends in Florida and other states in the coming months and reporting on them here.

This is a wonderful and exciting time to be entering the allied health field.  No matter what work setting you are in, allied health professionals are in demand.  As costs continue to rise, there are greater demands for improved quality and safety in patient care.  To tackle these problems, the U.S. healthcare system is turning to technology.

Why do allied health students need to know about electronic medical records? The answer is simple – because you will use electronic health records to accomplish tasks once on-the-job.  The transition from paper records to electronic health records affects everyone working in health care today.  Consider just a few examples of the changes electronic health records bring to these jobs:

• Medical assistants enter patient information, such as vital signs, into the electronic health record.
• Coding professionals review electronic documentation in the electronic health record to determine the appropriate code for an encounter.
• Technicians working in blood and chemistry labs, radiology, nuclear medicine, cardiovascular medicine and other areas respond to electronic orders and send test results electronically using an electronic health record.
• Billing professionals use information in the electronic health record to prepare insurance claims and patient statements. Read the rest of this entry »