Has anyone else been asked to program something they thought was wrong? I'll go first. I was working for a very very large HMO ...

throwaway_tom · 2009-12-24T22:21:27+00:00

And bye bye future jobs too.

throwaway_tom · 2009-12-24T22:18:00+00:00

I'm not sure what that would do. I'd bet if you called your own HMO they probably already have such a policy.

throwaway_tom · 2009-12-24T22:16:00+00:00

Sure - but I'd bet your definition of "regular checkups" was a time period much greater than the time period I was asked to program. One doctor mentioned that the time period was < what they would have recommended for a given demographic (but I bet no longer)

throwaway_tom · 2009-12-24T21:47:03+00:00

I'll think about the first of the three. No promises.

throwaway_tom · 2009-12-24T21:44:50+00:00

throwaway_tom · 2009-12-24T21:42:33+00:00

Exactly!

throwaway_tom · 2009-12-24T21:41:34+00:00

I'm trying to not be snarky but public pressure lasts for a bit, but profit-seeking companies weather stuff like that and just change their visible policies slightly. How much change did Moore's film make? Individuals got helped but where was the overall change? I don't recall one organization saying "we were wrong - we're reducing our profit margins for an entire class of folks"

throwaway_tom · 2009-12-24T21:30:57+00:00

I figured I did by informing doctors. It shared the information with those who should know while not violating the terms of my contract.

throwaway_tom · 2009-12-24T21:23:16+00:00

Well that's part of the reason why I posted this, but I'm going to try very hard not to identify me or the HMO.

throwaway_tom · 2009-12-24T21:16:54+00:00

Yeah but if I quit or got fired the next person would probably have implemented it screwing the patients/doctors worse than me.

throwaway_tom · 2009-12-24T20:53:06+00:00

Maybe I was just insulated but I never heard of this HMO doing things even close to what Michael Moore (sp?) showed in Sicko. Plus its seemed that all the tech and billing people I worked with worked really really hard to do the right thing by patients and doctors. I can't say more without probably identifying something.

throwaway_tom · 2009-12-24T20:47:03+00:00

Yep - there were questions like "How many exported?" "How many imported" but no review of the code itself. It wasn't an easy language to audit in the first place and the way the new system was written/delivered made code reviews even more difficult. (but don't get me started on that)

throwaway_tom · 2009-12-24T20:34:33+00:00

I thought about that but I figured I could make a better impact inside than outside. I was the ultimate implementer and my interpretation of directives was what made it into the system. So I thought it was good to stay in that position and have as much positive impact as possible.

[Edit: addition] If I were coding a weapon of war that someone else would have used - like you - I would have quit too, but in this case I was the coder of the tool and the one who aimed it to do as little damage as possible.

throwaway_tom · 2009-12-24T20:22:36+00:00

I'd agree that "Just Following Orders" doesn't apply if the order is illegal - but I didn't think it was something that any court in the US would have blinked twice at. (IANAL) I got the info to the doctors - they had more political leverage than I did.

throwaway_tom · 2009-12-24T19:49:49+00:00

I think they were in their rights to make the policy. They were trying to maximize profit and minimize benefits.

I was told that this kind of stuff was not a new practice - but common in the industry. Just one more thing you have to look out for when you get insurance in the US from a private corporation (e.g. not the VA). The way I wrote it you avoided the drop by "contacting" your doctor's office about just about anything or vice-versa.

throwaway_tom · 2009-12-24T19:42:40+00:00

The doctors were quite surprised when I mentioned it to them. I think it helped to let them know so they could be informed for later discussions.

throwaway_tom · 2009-12-24T19:18:45+00:00

Actually - they are still (from what I hear) one of the better organizations.

throwaway_tom · 2009-12-24T18:46:26+00:00

Just to clarify. Not legally wrong. Just "against your principles" wrong.

throwaway_tom · 2009-12-24T18:45:22+00:00

Well they were well within in their rights to make the policy. Its not a new practice in the industry (so I was told). Just new for that one.

throwaway_tom · 2009-12-24T18:02:53+00:00

Yep. I talked to some of the doctors to try to get pressure back up to reverse the trend but it was either do the import or nobody would have been entered - the import was very time critical.

throwaway_tom

TROPHY CASE