Tips For Avoiding Work-At-Home Scams

An old scam is making a comeback in the tough economy

Jan 29, 2009 5:18 pm US/Pacific
Reporting: Sue Kwon | cbs5.com

SAN FRANCISCO (CBS 5) ― With California's unemployment rate now over 9%, people are looking everywhere for jobs. Some are turning to ads and websites offering work that you can do at home, with little or no training. But, legal experts say most work-at-home opportunities are probably scams, that have been around since the Great Depression.

California's Better Business Bureau said it has received 400 complaints about the website Processathome.com. The site promises you can earn up to $225 a day processing rebates, with less than 60 minutes of training.

Other so called job "opportunities" to watch out for:

The classic envelope stuffing scheme - Experts said the bottom line is it's unlikely you'll get paid to stay at home and stuff envelopes.

Craft Assembly - Job seekers are asked for up-front fees for a kit to assemble toys, dolls and other craft projects with the promise of a per piece rate.

Medical Billing - Job seekers are asked to pay $300-$900 to start their own medical billing service at home. In return, they're promised state-of-the art software and a list of potential clients. The reality is that most medical clinics do their own billing.

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Some 'US'eful Medical Billing documents

Listed below are a few documents which will be very useful for all professionals involved with the US Medical Billing vertical. Just click the below links to preview, print or download the documents, all for free...

More and more documents will be added to the list as and when they become available. Anyone is welcome to share such useful documents that you may have...

Instruction Manuals and Job Aids

Medical Billing - A simple manual
Medical Billing Flow Chart
CMS 1500 - Instructions
CMS 1450 (UB-04) - Overview
CMS 1450 (UB-04) - Instructions
Modifiers
Modifiers for Medicare Billing
Medicare Part A Modifiers
Modifier 59
Proper use of Modifier 59
Medicare HIC Number Suffixes
Place Of Service Codes used in CMS 1500
Provider Taxonomy Codes
UCR - Usual, Customary and Reasonable Fees
Downcoding and Bundling of Claims
General Surgery Billing Guide
SNF Consolidated Billing
Emergency Room Outpatient Services Training Packet - An Old Manual
Emergency and ICU Procedures
Medicare Part A Intermediaries and Part B Carriers Listing
Basics of Insurance AR Calling
Basics of Patient Calling
AR Followup Tips
Phonetic Alphabets

Glossary

Glossary - General Coding Terminology
Glossary - Workers' Compensation

Sample & Usable Forms

CMS 1500
CMS 1450 (UB-04)
Dental Claim Form
List of Forms prescribed by the NY State Workers' Compensation Board
NF3 - No fault Insurance Claim Form
No-fault Insurance Arbitration Request Form

Presentations

Medical Billing - An Overview
Medical Billing Presentation
HIPAA Basics
HIPAA Presentation

AHIP Members - Health Insurance Plan Links

There are times when we aggressively search the internet for details of the US Health Insurance Companies or Plans and finally find ourselves landing up on the official websites of the insurance companies to find most of the details what we were looking for. On the other hand, it might be even harder to find the official websites of certain insurance companies.

However it maybe, won't it be helpful if there is a webpage which lists the official website URLs of many US Health Insurance companies and plans?

AHIP's website has such a page titled Health Insurance Plan Links which does that, click the link to check it out...

America's Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) is the national association representing nearly 1,300 member companies providing health insurance coverage to more than 200 million Americans. Their member companies offer medical insurance, long-term care insurance, disability income insurance, dental insurance, supplemental insurance, stop-loss insurance and reinsurance to consumers, employers and public purchasers.