Medical billing services are a blessing to medical practitioners that are hard-pressed for time and resources. They take over the burden of billing and related administrative tasks from the healthcare provider and increase their revenue. Medical billing services are quickly becoming the industry standard because of the many advantages they offer.
Medical billing services offer both claim submissions and comprehensive practice management solutions. Generally, small organizations that are either home-based or small scale offer only simple billing services. Larger practice management companies offer comprehensive packages that promise long-term benefits for the practice. These services can offer anything from advertising to scheduling assistance, and much more.
Depending on your organizational needs you can hire a provider who offers suitable services. The services are broadly categorized into standard services, extended services and practice management services.
Standard billing services
These are the minimum any medical billing provider offers. These include:
Claim submissions: Billing providers use medical billing software to submit claims. The patient demographics, encounter data, and insurance details are entered into the application that is programmed to validate the claim for accuracy. Accurate claims reduce the chances of claim rejection by the insurance company. The validated claim is submitted to the insurance company electronically within 24 hours.
Regular follow-up of claims: This is where medical billing providers prove their mettle. They follow up on the claim aggressively and tenaciously. The medical practice reaps the rewards of this strategy by receiving more payments on time.
Analytical reporting: Billing services capture and project key statistics in monthly reports. The reports can help business heads of the medical practice take steps to improve the growth, productivity and cost-savings in the establishment.
Patient billing and enquiries: Billing services take care of the logistics of the billing function, and assist in patient enquiries.
Extended billing services
These take on responsibilities that are not directly related to the billing process. They include:
Diagnosis and procedure coding: Billing providers do the medical coding for the patient record before it is entered into the medical billing software application.
Medical transcription: Medical transcription is done before the medical coding stage. Many billing providers offer transcription as an administrative service.
Credentialing insurance companies: Credentialing services are a real help to new medical practices. Billing providers evaluate the license, credibility, background and performance history of insurance companies, and initiate a relationship with them for the medical practice.