While doctors are busy seeing hundreds to thousands of patients and the medical staff is busy running the medical facility, there needs to be someone in charge of making collections of the payments due. This would fall onto the shoulders of the medical billing services. These are companies that specialize in collecting the daily claims from doctor’s offices, clinics, hospitals, and other medical facilities and then submitting them to the proper insurance company for payment. If you are interested in learning about medical billing services, continue reading the information below…
They are responsible for getting all the information as to who the patient is, what type of insurance each patient carries, and then the billing information for that type of insurance. It doesn’t matter if it is private insurance, group insurance, or Medicaid. These billing services take care of it all. This leaves more time for the doctors to focus on patients and the staff to concentrate on keeping the medical facility running appropriately.
If the doctors and the staff don’t have to be in charge of taking care of all the claims that come through, then their time can be dedicated more on maintaining high quality care for patients.
While their sole responsibility is to collect claims from the appropriate people, this isn’t their only duty. They strive for the collection of the highest possible return for medical facilities and to convert the patient’s visit into cash for the doctor, hospital, or clinic they were hired by. One of their goals is to keep the level of patient care at its highest and not to jeopardize the professional service provided by the doctors and staff of the medical facility.
-Create and mail statements to patients-Collect and analyze each patient’s information-Analysis of and recommendations for fee structures-Generating and accelerating patient’s claims-Monthly reports of statistical information is provided to the medical facility-Able to collect outstanding balances with courtesy-Professional preparation of the claims with proper codes and electronic submission-Provide internet access to the billing system-PDA access is also often available-Persistent claim follow-up-Prompt payment posting-Spread sheets are provided on productivity and business activity-Answer patient billing questions efficiently and personally
-Create and mail statements to patients-PDA access is also often available-Able to collect outstanding balances with courtesy-Spread sheets are provided on productivity and business activity-Professional preparation of the claims with proper codes and electronic submission-Analysis of and recommendations for fee structures-Collect and analyze each patient’s information-Prompt payment posting-Provide internet access to the billing system-Persistent claim follow-up-Monthly reports of statistical information is provided to the medical facility-Answer patient billing questions efficiently and personally
They can often submit a claim within the first 24 hours that it was received. These companies make their money by the amount of claims they make for medical facilities. They either charge a fee per claim or a percentage of the total collected.
Some services charge a startup or setup fee, but most just opt for a percentage of the total claims that pass through. They will often determine the amount of the fee by the size of the practice or the specialty of the facility and the average is between 3 to 6 percent. Sometimes the percentage is based on collection accumulated per man hour or for each claim. With the digital age at hand, most medical billing services provide software that directly links the medical facility’s computer with their own.
Want to find out more about medical billing services, then visit Leonard Horowitz’s site on how to choose the best medical billing services for your needs.