To increase revenue, save time and decrease the costs associated with billing, many healthcare facilities and private medical practices are choosing to outsource their revenue cycle management (RCM) and medical billing. When these tasks are outsourced to a reputable medical billing services company, patients receive the same cordial communication provided through an in-house billing department, but the provider benefits substantially because each claim is prepared and managed by a billing specialist.
The Benefits of Using an RCM and Medical Billing Service Company
Traditionally, healthcare professionals and private medical practices have maintained an internal billing structure. With in-house billing, revenue cycle management requires hiring personnel who are familiar with the process of filing, coding and managing claims. Besides the need to hire experienced staff, office space, special software and equipment are required: Outsourcing can eliminate the need for all of these and the associated costs.
Efficiency of the Billing Process
An accurate and efficient billing process is vital to the sustainability of any medical practice. Denied claims that are disregarded, past-due patient payments and incorrect coding practices that lead to confusion can all negatively affect a practice or facility’s daily cash flow. For many healthcare providers, claim denials are a frustrating cost of doing business. Each year, around 5-10% of medical billing claims are rejected (possibly more). With each claim costing around $25 to rework, providers lose money in eroded revenue and productivity. Choosing a reputable RCM and medical billing service company can greatly increase the day-to-day cash flow of any medical practice.
Save Time by Outsourcing
In-house revenue cycle management and medical billing services are extremely difficult to manage. Each claim must be accurate, filed in a timely fashion and followed-up in a timely manner to ensure receipt of payment. As such, an effective in-house billing department requires hiring staff members with excellent organizational skills who are dedicated to remaining abreast of the constantly changing billing codes. In addition, these employees must be able to speak with patients that have a past-due balance in a cordial, yet firm manner.
Outsourcing Reduces Costs Associated with Staffing
Many providers have concerns related to the actual cost of outsourcing their medical billing; however, if the cost of training new employees and the costs associated with ensuring, providing sick pay and annual raises to staff members is taken into consideration, many healthcare providers find that outsourcing can save their practice money.
Outsourcing Improves Your Clean Claims Rate
A clean claim refers to a medical insurance claim that is perfect: It has zero mistakes, does not need additional information for processing and has almost no risk of denial. Increasing revenue requires a high clean claims rate. With outsourced billing, your practice or facility’s billing structure is placed in the hands of qualified medical billing specialists who know the importance of submitting perfect claims. Outsourcing to a reputable company that employs medical billing specialists and offers innovative software solutions essentially eliminates the need for claim resubmission due to human error.
Software is Maintained by the RCM and Medical Billing Services Company
Maintaining billing software and equipment is one of the forgotten costs associated with in-house billing. When you choose to outsource your billing, the company handling your billing is responsible for maintaining the billing software and ensuring that it remains up-to-date as billing regulations change from one year to the next. Billing specialists stay on top of any changes to keep your billing department running perfectly and increasing revenue.
Outsourcing medical billing offers providers a way to decrease costs while increasing their clean claims rate and their day-to-day cash flow. Once the headaches associated with in-house billing are eliminated, providers can focus on caring for their patients.
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