Medical billing is a process that translates a healthcare service into a billing claim. It is the responsibility of the medical billing sector in a healthcare facility to follow up with the claim to make sure the practice receives reimbursement for the services utilized by the patient. An experienced medical billing staff can find ways to get optimum revenues for the practice.
The billing process is essential to the existence and overall financial health of any medical practice or facility, whether it is a private setup or run by the government. It is how a medical service provider pays its employees. Therefore, it is of utmost importance to have first-hand knowledge of patient insurance information, social security numbers, complete address, contact numbers, name, and date of birth, so that insurance claims can be placed and received without any trouble.
The need of medical care has always been a reason for concern, especially when people don’t have enough funds to pay for it when the medical bill becomes due. This can be a very challenging situation for medical billing agencies to handle. Here are 5 innovative approaches that every practice should incorporate to improve their medical billing procedures.
Use technology as an advantage
Technology can be advantageous for medical billing services that strive for effectiveness and efficiency. With the help of readily available medical billing software, healthcare organizations have the opportunity to swiftly determine whether there is a chance for the claims to be accepted or denied because of billing rules for insurance plans, Medicare and Medicaid tend to change very quickly. The best soft wares are updated automatically as rules and policies change. This way, it becomes easier for medical billing professionals to work towards increasing the revenue they can collect for clients.
Train for success
The financial condition of any healthcare facility largely depends on the performance of the billing section. The highly increasing demand on providers with relatively decreasing reimbursement, calls for a healthcare facility to have highly expert medical billing staff. It is mandatory for medical billing section to have a proper understanding of the claim process, medical insurance policies, and the appeals process.
However, there are a lot of healthcare facilities who believe in outsourcing their medical billing section to professional billing agencies. Every billing agency has its own set of rules. One billing agency may require chart notes for follow-up of patient’s care and non-standard treatment protocol; while another may need chart notes with supporting claims for fresh patient intake, establishing a primary care relationship.
Quarterly training programs should also be part of the routine for the staff as they help in including components that enable billing departments to quickly access filing requirements and access patient files to make sure each carrier has the necessary information required to speed up claims processing after submission.
Use business intelligence to identify areas for improvement.
Accurate data mining works wonders for medical billing agencies to improve their level of service and collection. With new and improved innovations being incorporated in medical billing software, unique reports can be executed that help in providing specific information which then assists in decision making and implementing improvements.
Most of the billing software’s available today do offer the option to create custom reports. Once reports have been finalized, they contribute to medical billing management by increasing staff productivity, swiftly identifying payment inaccuracies, as well as adjusting staffing requirements.
Communicate wisely with patients.
Misleading and ambiguous communication can make or break the situation for you, as well as the patients. In fact, it is one of the main reasons healthcare businesses have a hard time with their medical billing collections. It is mandatory for medical billing professionals to support medical staff and create an atmosphere by encouraging them to post all relevant billing information on a pre-defined location in the patient check-in area. By posting the terms of payment at the visible location for patients, there will be no room for confusion about billing options of the medical service. This information should include upfront payments, insurance requirements, billing procedures, and co-payments.
Collect full information
The best possible way for a medical billing agency to increase accuracy and efficiency is by making sure that patient information is up to date and completed. Important personal information includes patient’s full name, birth date, work information, and multiple contact numbers such as work, home, and cell numbers. This critical information is then shared with both insurance companies and collection agencies. Additionally, you can also ask patients for their social security number. This piece of information is extremely helpful when cases of non-payment are turned over to a collection agency.
Conclusion
Medical billing is the collection of bills charged to patients who have received treatments from medical service providers. A medical biller should be able to navigate through various insurance rules and regulations to reduce the number of days to receive payments and understand the differences between various types of insurance carriers along with their claim requirements.
It is the also duty of a medical biller to provide successful follow-up efforts for payments to be received including the appeals process for denied claims. A medical biller is responsible for collecting all the required patient information and making sure that insurance claims and payments by the patients are collected timely. They must also use data and reports and suggest potential areas of improvement.
Clearly, there are many options for you to make your billing practice more effective and well-organized. By working closely with physicians and medical services, acquiring accurate patient information, and using top quality software, you can eventually improve upon the billing practices of your organization.
