Becker's Healthcare October 23, 2024
Regulatory challenges, evolving coding practices and ethical concerns are the critical issues facing medical coders, according to an Oct. 18 report from Black Book Research.
Here are five things to know from Black Book’s survey of health information management professionals:
1. Ninety percent of those surveyed said that upcoding is a major ethical dilemma for staff coders. An employee who is ordered to perform illegal coding might be considered an involuntary accomplice if they are coerced, if they are set up to take the blame for illegal activities, according to the report. Eighteen percent of respondents reported facing pressure from their employer to engage in what they described as fraudulent coding for provider financial gain.
2. Eighty...