How will your career be affected if healthcare reform becomes law? If you’re a billing and coding specialist or student, questions like these have probably been on your mind:
• Will I see a big increase in demand for my services?
• If coverage is increased for eldercare, women’s care and other targeted needs, will that create new opportunities for me?
• If Medicare changes, how will that impact on my career?
Because the healthcare bill is still being modified and debated, there is no way to know definitive answers to those questions. But some predictions are still possible.
Let’s look at what we do know . . .
Millions of additional Americans will be covered if healthcare legislation passes. “The $1.1 trillion bill would expand insurance coverage to an additional 38 million people over the next decade by requiring that almost all citizens have insurance and providing subsidies to those who can’t afford it,” writes Emily T. Walker in MedPage Today.
Source: “House Passes Healthcare Reform” by Emily T. Walker; MedPage Today.
Prediction: The need for billers and coders should increase dramatically if legislation passes.
A number of specialized services will be covered. According to the On Women blog of U.S. News, additional women’s healthcare procedures, including mammograms and cervical cancer screenings, will be covered if the bill passes.
Source: “Women’s Preventive Health Amendment Added to Senate Reform Bill” by Deborah Kotz; On Women blog.
Prediction: An increase in needed services for women and other underserved groups should contribute to a growing need for medical billers and coders.
Medicare will remain a strong and growing program. For assurance that Medicare services will not be diminished if healthcare reform passes, watch “VP Biden Discusses Healthcare with Seniors,” a 90-minute video available on Whitehouse.gov.
Prediction: As America’s population continues to increase (as reported on the U.S. Census), a growing number of older Americans will need medical care – and that should increase the demand for skilled information processors.
While no one can predict exactly how many new jobs will be created by healthcare reform, the outlook seems extremely good for billers and coders – and for the consumers they serve.
The anticipation is growing. I hope that our field will increase along with our knowledge within the medical billing and coding field. The Reform has a lot of good qualities and hopefully our official superiors know what is in store for all americans, cause we are on the edge of our seats.
Posted by Brandy Oliver | July 16, 2011, 10:37 amOverall, the changes introduced by the health care reform bill will result in significantly more insured patients which will benefit the revenue of physicians – especially primary care doctors – family, internal, pediatrician, and geriatric providers. Working with family providers in my billing business, I’ve seen the impact of the uninsured on family doctors revenue, and how much they have to write-off due to patients who are not insured.The changes introduced by the health care reform bill are positive.
Posted by ANDREA MCCATHEN | July 19, 2011, 7:50 amMy hope for the future of Healthcare reform is that we as Billers and Coders are able to keep up with the ever changing situation. I greatly appreciate blogs like this that have the information at hand. Thank you for pulling it all together. I look forward to ‘the news’ from these blogs.
Posted by Jennifer Oakes | July 19, 2011, 7:50 amI think there are some really good points in the healthcare reform and if the government quits draggig their fee that a lot of Americans ar oing to get the help they need and yes the medical billing and coding field will expand and so will our job security. I think that all Americans will have something to say about the new reform wether it is bad or good I guess we have to wait and see
Posted by Christy Heffern | July 19, 2011, 9:18 amThis new bill sounds to be great, especially for women. But at what cost for the insurance? If you are forced to have and costs are high for premiums, low wages, will it be used? Are preimums, deductables, copays, etc be keep in line or will they go up as well? I hate to use my insurcance now as my deduct is high as well as the costs that insurance will not pay for is getting larger.
Posted by Sue Hall | July 19, 2011, 7:32 pmI am hopeful that no matter what transpires in regard to healthcare reform, many of us already and soon-to-be medical biller and coders will at least get our foot in the door. I really want to become an expert at this point. I need the experience. I get a rudh just passing a test and knowing a handful of medical terms. I would love to see how all this training may help the doctors and patients.
Posted by Virginia G. | July 20, 2011, 9:34 amI hope that this bill pasts so that billing and coding will have a promising future.
Posted by Chelsey Guillory | July 22, 2011, 8:26 amWe will all have to want and see how the bill plays out. I am sure there will be many items that will change over time. Billing and coding at this time appears to be a high demand job and should continue to be in the near future.
Posted by Betty Tannahill | July 22, 2011, 5:20 pmI feel if this legislation passes there will be a large demand for more billers and coders in the field. This bill has a lot of good qualities but also a lot of unknown fallout right now as well which I think makes the American people a bit skeptical. We all want and need medical coverage but how this will play out over the years to come is still uncertain as to the bottom line of the cost of healthcare for the working American people.
Posted by Sharon Karlheim | July 23, 2011, 9:04 amIt would seem that I ‘ve had a midlife career change which is definitely a step forward. I look forward to what the future may hold for me.
Posted by Stephen Hershey | July 24, 2011, 12:10 pmThere will be more Americans getting healthcare insurance. Which means there will a bigger demand for billers and coders to process the forms.
Posted by Melcena Jordan | July 24, 2011, 12:28 pmI pray that in the future we as bill/coders will have the correct information on the Healthcare Reform on Medical Billing.I pray that all American people will be able to have some type of medical insurance for themselves and their family members.
Posted by Millie Johnson | August 2, 2011, 7:23 pmHopefully the Health-care Reform will be what it’s suppose to be and all of us can have some kind of health insurance that is affordable so even the poorest people can go to the doctor. Because if it isn’t then the people who need it most still won’t be able to see a doctor. If there isn’t a huge influx of patient’s there will not be a huge need for billers and coders.
Posted by Jackie Eggers | August 3, 2011, 7:48 pmWith millions of Americans qualifying for more health care services, I can only foresee an increase in the demand for coders and billers. I am hoping that our career will only expand…
Posted by Karla Medrano | August 5, 2011, 12:09 pmAs a future biller/coder, I can only hope that this will be an improvement. With the rising cost of healthcare and the absolute need for the best insurance coverage possible, we can only hope for the best. These days its so hard to find a job, let a lone one that has good benefits, and I feel that is what we need. Americans, as a whole, are hard working people just trying to do the best for our families as we can and we should be rewarded for all of our hard work by companies we are making rich by giving its employees better benefits.
Posted by Patricia | August 6, 2011, 4:39 pmI feel that with the babyboomers getting older and people in general living longer if the healthcare bill passes it will cause a need for more billers and coders to keep up with the number of people receiving healthcare. I also feel the billing and coding job oppurtunities will also grow as the population ages. HIPAA laws have contributed to the need for more educated professional to handle the billing and coding of healthcare industries.
Posted by Alma Skube | August 7, 2011, 11:17 amThere are always good points and not so good points when changes are made. Especially in the political sense. But, hopefully this new upcoming chane will be of the greatest service to those who are now not covered with healthcare
plans. As for the effect on billers and coders? It seems as though there will always be a demand for certified professional billers and coders, as healthcare for humankind will always be needed. I am looking forward to joining fellow colleagues in medical billing and coding.
Posted by Kathleen Romano | August 23, 2011, 6:09 pmIf all goes well with the health care reform, the outlook for increased need of billers and coders will be substantial. Having to insure so many more people in the United States, plus additions to women health care and, of course, care for the elderly, this seems to improve the job security.
Posted by Lisa Binns | August 24, 2011, 2:27 pmI had been thinking about the impact before I read this article. My thoughts are that thousands more Americans will then have some form of healthcare. Just the preventative side should keep coders very busy. Those people who do not seek healthcare now due to not having insurance will also increase our business. I think this will be the best time for this profession in growth.
Posted by Terry Moor | August 27, 2011, 4:59 pmI hope the medical field will continue to grow, and that the need for biller & coders will become increasing bigger all over the country.
Posted by Penny E. Rhoads | September 2, 2011, 1:33 pm