Shortcuts are one thing, but cutting corners never works out long term.

Take this story as a prime example, where a manager thinks he’s saving money by having an employee work remotely, even though there’s no way to correctly bill the time.

Let’s see how this employee made remote work really pay…

Try to Save Money? Try again…..

This was more than a few years ago when I worked for a low ball Medical Home Health company.

I was hired as a Respiratory Therapist and had a area to cover roughly 150 miles out from the office.

The company had issues with managers because of the loss of money and always had turnover.

Company policy sounds like it’s not working out.

So my job was to set up breathing treatment machines, but the most common thing was checking on oxygen concentrators in patients’ homes.

At the time, I would make $25 a visit plus mileage.

So you try and group the patients and hit three or four at a shot.

Every month a pt had to be checked and the check lasted about 15 minutes just for a fast check.

Brief but important task.

So one day we get a new manager that was really all about saving money and getting the company back on track.

He started to streamline departments and all I could hear was things were not done BY THE BOOK.

So he called me into the office one day.

I worked from home mostly, and had a talk.

That the cost of driving everywhere was too high for the amount of pts I had and could we do something about it.

Explained that there was no other way of doing my job than how I was doing it.

So he came up with the idea of a PHONE VISIT.

Ring, ring… Hello? That makes no sense.

I explained really can’t do that cause I could not see the equipment and he countered with the drivers see the machines every week and can just spot check to see if they were working.

So he made up a worksheet to check off the things I usually look for: hours of use, clean filters, clean machine, hoses ok and not needed repaired… total of 10 questions.

He proceeded to say I can call and have the pt give me hours and ask the questions and bill it under a visit.

Which I can’t do cause the code isn’t right, so he looks up all our codes for me and picks Phone Consult and tell me to bill under that.

What’s next? Open heart surgery via telehealth visit?

To cover my rear, I ask for a letter stating this and he gives it to me next day.

Cue Malicious Compliance.

I got all my patients’ numbers toward the end of the month and worked through the list.

I got 34 done in about 4 hours and decided that was enough to make a point.

At this time I complete my paperwork and send it to corporate with the letter from my boss telling me to bill under that type code.

Week later I get a check for $4250, since that phone visit code was a $125 per consult (mainly used for ventilators).

Well if it’s up to code…

Not bad for a part time job.

So the next week I do a few more patients and submit my pay.

The following week I get a call from corporate asking why I was getting paid more than full timers in executive posts.

I explained everything and forwarded all the documentation to them.

A week later the manager was at his desk when a fleet of cars pulled in and in walked HR from main office and fired him.

Welp, the manager couldn’t let it go, so he got let go.

Let’s investigate the comments.

Someone says, you always gotta check the codes.

Someone else is skeptical of the firing story…

Somebody else says there’s probably some details missing.

Another poster points out the negligence at play.

This poster says, uhhhh fraud?

I’d follow a stupid rule if it got me a raise, too.

At least he made some temporary gains.

If you liked that story, check out this post about an oblivious CEO who tells a web developer to “act his wage”… and it results in 30% of the workforce being laid off.