Ok, you might have read the title of this post and wondered why I’d even be writing about this. This is after all a medical coding blog right? Eli Global, LLC probably does not ring a bell. At least for me it didn’t when I first read about this. I was like Eli Global, LLC? Never heard of them. Moving on.
But here’s the thing. Eli Global, LLC is a huge company that has many companies under it’s umbrella, and one of those companies is AAPC. You’ve heard of AAPC right? AAPC is one of the main organizations that certifies coders and many of us (myself included) have gotten at least one coding certification through them over the years. So, the owner of Eli Global, LLC (and also AAPC) is under investigation now for different illegal things.
I don’t want this post to be about my opinion on this. I’ll go along with the whole innocent-until-proven-guilty-thing, but I have to admit, this is concerning to me. I’ll post links to some different articles and you can form your own conclusions:
Articles:
The United States Justice Department
Well, maybe I’ll just put one of my opinions in this post and that’s it. So, in order to be a certified coder, it is just expected that we have high standards. AAPC even has a Code of Ethics. Here it is:
Code of Ethics
AAPC has a code of ethics which addresses coding professionalism and compliance integrity. The eight components of AAPC’s Code of Ethics are:
- Maintain and enhance the dignity, status, integrity, competence, and standards of our profession.
- Respect the privacy of others and honor confidentiality.
- Strive to achieve the highest quality, effectiveness, and dignity in both the process and products of professional work.
- Advance the profession through continued professional development and education by acquiring and maintaining professional competence.
- Know and respect existing federal, state, and local laws, regulations, certifications, and licensing requirements applicable to professional work.
- Use only legal and ethical principles that reflect the profession’s core values, and report activity that is perceived to violate this Code of Ethics to the AAPC Ethics Committee.
- Accurately represent the credential(s) earned and the status of AAPC membership.
- Avoid actions and circumstances that may appear to compromise good business judgment or create a conflict between personal and professional interests.
Hopefully it’s not too much of a stretch for the owner of AAPC to follow it’s own Code of Ethics. I’ll leave it at that.
Thanks for reading.
-Lindsay Della Vella BS, COC
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