by Matt Wood
(Alabama)
How will this particular profession be affected if and/or when the President’s Healthcare proposals are approved and enforced, or predictably anyway?
Answer:
I think all of us in the health care services industry are asking the same question. After seeing how the implementation of HIPAA affected (and cost) us all, one must wonder how some of the sweeping changes being discussed in Washington will impact the industry.
Regardless of how the presidents health care initiatives play out, there will still be a need for qualified health care professionals.
The U. S. Department of Labor – Bureau of Labor Statistics projects an annual increase of 14.4% in health care office and administrative support occupations. Although the Department of Labor does not specifically categorize the medical billing and coding specialist, they do project a 20.9% increase in those performing bookkeeping and accounting functions and a 21.5% increase in general office functions – which is where duties such as medical billing coder best fit.
This corresponds to a projected increase of 21.3% for professional and related occupations – or health care providers. All these providers will need billing services. Especially considering the increasing complexity of the billing process brought on by changes in health care reimbursement.
This is probably most likely directly related to the aging baby boomer generation. There will always be a strong need for those who know the “nuts and bolts” of health care reimbursement – insurance claims billing, medical billing guidelines, cpt medical billing codes, and all the other skills medical billing and coding specialist jobs require.
One thing I have notice in this business is that anytime there is change, there is opportunity. The bigger the change, the bigger the opportunity.
If we educate ourselves on the changes, there are opportunities to offer services and consulting to practices that don’t have the time or inclination to learn about these and comply with these changes. HIPAA is a good example of this.