Hi all,
So this is kind of an oddly specific question. But I'm trying to become a medical coder, been trying for 2 years now since college. I've held jobs in 2 clinics as receptionists, and recently I was offered to apply for an actual coding job at the company I used to work for.
(For those who don't know, medical coding is essentially processing insurance claims. The doctors send us their chart notes, we make sure the billing codes are correct based on what was done in the appointment, and send it on to the insurance company.)
I currently work for a religious organization. The previous company I worked for, and the one with this new job, is not religious. The coding job is for several family medicine clinics, so primary care only (runny nose, broken arm, etc). No specialty clinics of any kind, but some of the doctors do provide obstetric services (care for a pregnant woman).
Here's where I'm concerned, though. The religious company will not provide abortions for patients. The smaller company, the one I am considering transferring back to... I'm not sure if they provide abortions or not. I don't know if they'd just refer patients to an actual OBGYN clinic, or do it in office, because some of the doctors may have that kind of training. And I'm also not sure if they would prescribe the abortion pill.
I would obviously NOT be involved in any decision making about abortion, IF this company even does provide these services. I would be billing insurance companies for things that were already done. But since a lot of it is codes, I may have no real way of knowing if these things do happen in the doctors' offices. And while I'd be helping patients by processing their bills AFTER they got the procedure (again, IF the company even does that), I don't know if I, as a person, can be paid for billing for something that I'm morally against. Even knowing that the doctors would refer to someone else to do the procedure rubs me the wrong way. But on the other hand, I'm not the one doing the abortion, or even talking to the patient at all about it, just sending them their bill. And again, this is IF the company even does those procedures.
Am I overthinking this?
So this is kind of an oddly specific question. But I'm trying to become a medical coder, been trying for 2 years now since college. I've held jobs in 2 clinics as receptionists, and recently I was offered to apply for an actual coding job at the company I used to work for.
(For those who don't know, medical coding is essentially processing insurance claims. The doctors send us their chart notes, we make sure the billing codes are correct based on what was done in the appointment, and send it on to the insurance company.)
I currently work for a religious organization. The previous company I worked for, and the one with this new job, is not religious. The coding job is for several family medicine clinics, so primary care only (runny nose, broken arm, etc). No specialty clinics of any kind, but some of the doctors do provide obstetric services (care for a pregnant woman).
Here's where I'm concerned, though. The religious company will not provide abortions for patients. The smaller company, the one I am considering transferring back to... I'm not sure if they provide abortions or not. I don't know if they'd just refer patients to an actual OBGYN clinic, or do it in office, because some of the doctors may have that kind of training. And I'm also not sure if they would prescribe the abortion pill.
I would obviously NOT be involved in any decision making about abortion, IF this company even does provide these services. I would be billing insurance companies for things that were already done. But since a lot of it is codes, I may have no real way of knowing if these things do happen in the doctors' offices. And while I'd be helping patients by processing their bills AFTER they got the procedure (again, IF the company even does that), I don't know if I, as a person, can be paid for billing for something that I'm morally against. Even knowing that the doctors would refer to someone else to do the procedure rubs me the wrong way. But on the other hand, I'm not the one doing the abortion, or even talking to the patient at all about it, just sending them their bill. And again, this is IF the company even does those procedures.
Am I overthinking this?
