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With health and diseases becoming a major issue these days around the world, it has become A LOT more important to have more and more coders involved in the medical field for insurance. But what is medical coding? A medical coder, clinical coding officer, or diagnostic coder are professionals involved in the health care sector who analyze clinical documents and using proper classification systems, assign standard codes to them. They provide medical coding guidelines and suggestions to help regulate the ways doctors, nurses, and other medical staff provide care for their patients. There are three main types of medical coding:

1) ICD (International Classification of Diseases): These are codes used for describing the cause of illness, injury, or death.

2) CPT (Current Procedural Terminology): These deal with anesthesia, surgery, pathology, radiology, measurement procedures, and new technological changes in the medical field.

3) HCPCS Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System): These include outpatient hospital care, medical aid, and Medicare.

Let us look at some points as to why coding is necessary for the medical field.

DATA SYSTEMS
When the coding is paired with the data systems of the hospitals, a powerful tool is made. By doing so, a large number of data from various hospitals, clinics, and other sources are stored, accessed, and used from one large online data system. This implementation helps in the transfer of any patient’s data from any hospital to another for any medical purpose. This information helps doctors to be more connected and make wiser decisions, especially in cases involving the life and death situation of the patient.

PATIENT CARE

Coding is very much required for reimbursements, which include submitting medical claims with insurance companies and bills between insurers and patients. The transfer of information for bill related purposes requires medical records, patient’s medical needs, lab results, pathology records (if any), and any other related documents. Appropriate payment is possible only when the required diagnostic codes are put in place, which also means to verify in case the medical claim is denied by the insurance company.

REGULATIONS

Medical billing and coding fall under the rules and guidelines of many countries and states. Coders in this field are also responsible for protecting the privacy of the patients and their families. They are supposed to take safeguards to preserve the confidential details concerning the patient and his/her medical background in a safe place. Electronic medical records fall under the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10) codes issued by the World Health Organization (WHO).

Medical coding analysts are in the front line in healthcare data analytics. They work in many types of healthcare setups and not necessarily in hospitals and clinics. Their valuable service is very functional for research and development in the medical field.

The Indian insurance sector is in general well equipped for key loss incidents, including pandemics; however, the financial implications will take time to take part in and will be insurer explicit. Insurers are acting in response to the expanding COVID-19 outbreak on numerous fronts-as claims payers, owners, and investment executives. Each has it’s own discrete confront, not just for the insurance industry, nevertheless for the global economy and the public at large.

A year which could have been an astounding year for the Indian insurance sector in terms of premium growth is abruptly staring at a state where harmonizing the last year’s figure seems an intimidating challenge. The most recent three months of financial years have conventionally been the months that observed peak collection for the industry.

Now given the lockdown in serious last week of April, premium collections are beginning to suffer considerably. The blow is enormous for the reason that most cities are now under lockdown. Owing to flight annulments, travel insurance is not being bought by customers. Purchasing new policies where insurers need to take up medical tests are consuming time and has a delay. There is no more new policy issuance for NRIs or those with current travel history. So, in general, the insurance segment has been hit in many directions.

Insurance Premiums Vs Death Claim challenge
In addition to the loss of new business premiums, the insurance sector is looking at a challenge of enhanced death claims. Though the government has proceeded positively and gone for a total lockdown of 21 days even prior to the number of death toll ascent to double digits. Nevertheless, given the early signs of community spread becoming obvious and the size of the country, nothing can be taken for granted. Insurance agencies feel it would be too early at this stage to remark on exponential augmentation in death claims in life insurance. If India can efficiently manage the spread, subsequently, there could be a slighter impact on life insurance claims. Talking about life insurance policies, a number of organizations will persist to honor the claims on current policies conversely; the price of future policies will see an increase in the rates and the number of policies that offer comprehensive coverage may witness a fall,

The IRDA Clarification
Corona is going to the major challenge the Indian insurance sector has seen so far. The infection has a pan-India reach and there is a very genuine risk of its distribution exponentially. Treatment of COVID-19 may require extended hospitalization which could be expensive. Many individuals have some type of health coverage, be it a company of personal health cover. Though, as this virus is new, there is a lot of uncertainty if corona cases would be covered under offered health policies or not. To deal with the concerns of the policyholders and to bring clearness on the coverage of coronavirus, insurance regulator IRDA came up with instructions for the insurance companies on March 4. The IRDA law stated: that if the hospitalization is covered then the insurance firms shall ensure that the cases related to COVID 19 shall be rapidly handled.

The Road Ahead
Though insurance firms are listed under the register of exempted services under the lockdown with common restrictions on movement there is barely any chance of new business. Insurance players with robust digital infrastructure ought to fare superior to others if there is a spiky rise in COVID-19 cases (as observed in China and Italy). One of the main challenges for insurers could be empowering substitute work arrangements for their employees and sales force such that they are more flexible and able to deal with rising claims and quicker response times.

At age 65, most people qualify for their Initial Enrollment period with Medicare. It’s during this time that you can buy a Medicare Supplement without having to answer health questions. Typically, you only get one Initial Enrollment period. It begins three months before the month of your Medicare eligibility and ends three months after the month of eligibility. The month of eligibility is the month of your 65th birthday, if you become eligible for Medicare because you are turning 65 years old.

The Initial Enrollment period is a great opportunity for people to get Medicare health insurance. That’s because, typically, insurance companies must use medical underwriting to determine whether to accept your application. However, if you enroll during your Initial Enrollment period, you can buy any Medicare Supplement policy (that’s available in your area) without having to answer health questions and insurers can’t deny issuance of your policy.

It’s important to note that people with Medicare, due to disability, will be eligible for a second Initial Enrollment period at age 65. The same way anyone else becoming eligible for Medicare, for the first time, qualifies at age 65.

In most cases, Medicare Supplements pay what Medicare doesn’t cover at the hospital and doctor’s office. However, Medicare Supplements do not cover the majority of prescription drugs.

For drug coverage, you should consider enrolling in a Medicare Prescription Drug plan. Also known as Part D, this is separate and voluntary insurance that may help lower your prescription drug out-of-pocket costs. As with Medicare Supplements, private insurance companies offer Part D drug plans.

Although Part D is deemed “voluntary”, there are consequences for not enrolling in a qualified drug plan when you first become eligible for Medicare. That penalty is about 32 cents per month for every month that you could have enrolled but didn’t. The penalty is a lifetime carry which often times surprises people.

It’s important to compare Medicare Supplement benefits and prices before you decide which plan is right for you. That’s because all Medicare Supplements are standardized which means the plans offered and the benefits in those plans are the same for all companies.

There can be big differences in the premiums that different insurance companies charge for exactly the same coverage. By shopping and comparing, you could save hundreds of dollars per year.

There is a free service that can help you choose wisely by providing you with a list of companies who offer the most coverage at the lowest price, in your area.

Athletes and people with an active life style, or are serious about their health, need a good amount of nutrients to optimise their performance. Certain supplements like creatine and fish oil are needed by athletes in greater quantities than other people need them. Greens are another important supplement that is often ignored, or at least does not get the same amount of attention.

This is a Superfood Cocktail

Athletic Greens is a greens powder that has been brought out especially for use by athletes and people willing to invest in their health. It offers a premium superfood cocktail, with a well balanced list of ingredients that contains most of what athletes need for peak performance. Many greens drinks do not taste very pleasant, but this one has had several fruits, vegetables, vanilla and stevia added to the mixture. This results in a very smooth and slightly sweet taste that will appeal to most people.

A Single Serving Gives the Full Daily Value of Most Vitamins

The packaging on the container does claim no sweeteners are added to the mixture, but stevia, although definitely a herbal extract, is also used in many other foods and drinks as a sweetener. The other ingredients in Athletic Greens provide a complete multivitamin and multi mineral combination, which together with the greens supplement, will give athletes a supply of everything they need for a capital performance. A single serving of Athletic Greens will give the athlete the requisite daily dose of zinc, almost the whole daily Vitamin A requirement, together with the complete complement of Vitamin C, E and biotin, as well as the necessary assortment of B vitamins needed. This single serving also includes 160 percent of the essential day to day requirement of Vitamin B6 and about 500 percent of the Vitamin B12 that everybody needs for brain health. Enough Vitamin B12 is often difficult to get in the vegan diet, so Athletic Greens is a drink that will be a first rate choice of supplement for any athlete who is a vegan.

Different Sections

All these ingredients are obtained from various sources and foods. Most of them come from a variety of greens, mushrooms and a wide range of herbs and herbal extracts, and all are carefully selected and have been tested thoroughly. These are all great for building g immunity as well as boosting energy levels. These ingredients are divided into four different components.

1. The first part of the list contains all the well-known Superfoods. These include the herbs and greens that are incorporated for their nutrients and alkalinity. Alkalinity is necessary for all athletes to keep the Ph of their bodies maintained, especially those athletes who neglect the eating of enough green vegetables in their normal diets. The Superfoods group includes supplements like spirulina, wheat grass and chlorella, and these elements make up the bulk of Athletics Greens drink.

2. The second section of important ingredients includes a number of antioxidants and even more herbs. This is the second biggest group of nutrients in the powder. Among other elements, the powder contains the essential antioxidant citrus bioflavonoids, some pea protein and CoQ-10.

3. A group of mushrooms, with both reishi and shiitake, are included in the third component. These, together with other digestive enzymes, aid the speedy digestion and absorption of all the nutrients.

4. The last section contains a selection of the important probiotics. Athletic Greens is a great source of the well-known important probiotics lactobacillus acidophilus and bifidobacterium bifidum. These microflorae are dairy free, but the acidophilus may also aid lactose sensitive people to manage digestion of lactose. The natural development of microflora already in the intestines, is aided by the inclusion in the superfoods section of the probiotic fructooligosaccharide. This will develop many favourable side effects in athletes’ general health.

Two Servings a Day Recommended

The manufacturers of Athletic Greens recommend athletes take two servings a day. Product review of Athletics green powder leads one to the conclusion that this is one of the most effective wholefood, greens and vitamin supplements on the market, one that will certainly aid digestive health and help to produce the energy every athlete needs, Athletic Greens is undoubtedly one of the best in the market, but it is also pretty expensive. Most people however, athletes or not, agree that it is worth the price and can be considered life insurance. The two servings a day of Athletic Greens help them reach peak performance.

Let’s face it, 2020 has been a tough year.

First the pandemic; then being sent home to work; then finding it hard to contact people-who are also working from home…

Now that fall is almost upon us, things are still up in the air: are our kids going back to school? Are we going back into the office? Are prospects going to answer their phones?

In a sea of uncertainty, one thing is sure: we still have quotas to reach, bills to pay, and life will go on.

Here are 5 things you can do right now to prepare for a good fall, and a happy holiday season to come:

1) Don’t give up. Oh, I know, while you may not be able to see your way out of things right now, remember that things will change. More and more companies are opening up; each one of these companies have goals and quotas just like you. They want to-and need to-buy what you are selling. And they will.

So, work on adjusting your attitude and start visualizing the end of this year as much more productive than it’s been. Remember: It all starts with our attitudes.

2) Start with your existing client base. While it may be difficult to reach lots of new clients by phone, you probably do have the phone numbers of your existing clients. Call them this week; reconnect with them. And then ask for referrals.

Any referrals will do: Referrals in other departments of their company, other locations, other contacts they know. And don’t forget to get a handle on their needs this fall. Why not write a pre-order right now?

3) Re-write your email campaign. Many clients I work with are having big success by re-writing and re-organizing a drip email campaign for prospects. Question: When was the last time you rewrote your email campaign?

4) Make a production plan. And I don’t mean a “quota” production plan, I mean an activity plan. Do you have a specific goal for number of calls and emails you’re going make and send each and every day? Are you tracking it? Are you reaching it?

Someone once said that if you’re not planning, then you’re planning to fail. It doesn’t matter what your results are in the short term, what matters is your consistent activity level each and every day. If you put in the work-you’ll get results.

5) Put reinforcements in place. Make sure you devise ways of rewarding yourself when you reach your goals. Did you make your production goals today? Reward yourself. Did you reach your quota goal this month? Take yourself and your spouse/family out to a nice (socially distanced) meal.

We all need to take care of ourselves and give ourselves the motivation we need to succeed-especially in this environment. So, think about what you enjoy and reward yourself accordingly.