When it comes to specialties in medical billing, things can get complicated very fast. If you are choosing a medical billing partner, it may be worthwhile to inquire if their approach to medical billing will enable them to work with your specialities instead of just focusing on the specialties alone. At New England Medical Billing, we would even argue that finding the perfect company with the exact speciality is not as important as finding the right company with the right medical billing process.
Boost efficiency through automation
As much as you can, work with a medical billing company that is going to help you automate your billing system. Automating the billing process will help cut back on errors by developing a stress-free payment and billing experience for both patients and providers.
Automation is also about creating a good system: knowing when charges will be made, knowing the company’s stance in the face of denials/rejections and just how involved in the process that medical billing company is. Be sure to look for a medical billing company that will allow flexible payment options and provide clear reminders for patients.
Apply data analytics and business intelligence
A good medical billing company should have the ability to provide insightful and useful data and analytics to help the business grow. When done correctly, data can be analyzed to determine what can be done to make patient’s experiences and medical visits more productive. This data can also be used to help adjust the procedure coded and keeping track of patient service tracks..
Analytics and data can also be used to prevent fraud, improve company efficiency, save time, money and resources as well as invest in programs that could be life changing for your patients. Using such data as EMR (electronic medical records), Medicaid, Medicare, CHIP, laboratory test results, surveys, insurance claims and social media or lifestyle data, healthcare companies are able to identify high risk patients that are proactively managing their care so they can make conscious improvements to their care.
Consider the nuances of your specialty
How specific your speciality is will determine how specifically trained your medical billing company needs to be. If your medical billing company is coding your claims they will require detailed knowledge and specialty specific coding certifications. It is very important that whoever you work with is knowledgeable and trained according to the latest ICD-10 codes. as this will save time, money and confusion. However, if your providers are coding claims then the provider feedback loop on denials becomes relevant.
When choosing a medical billing company, feel free to ask them to show you their experience in your specific specialty; however, remember, if your healthcare provider is centered around provider coding in the EHR, then your concern should be the method and quality of denial feedback and recommendations..
Collaborate with a strong RCM partner
RCM—revenue cycle management—is the backbone of a good experience. Since your RCM partner will manage the administrative and clinical functions associated with processing claims, you want to make sure their process is thorough, easy for patients to use as well as easy for you to understand. Also, there needs to be a clear process for catching those claims that are the exception to the rule.
There are other important things to determine when choosing a medical billing company such as their company size and reputation. The size of the company will let you know how diverse they are in specialty billing as well as give you an indication as to how efficient they are or will be based on how they perform during non-peak billing periods. Secondly, a larger company can better absorb staffing changes.
Also keep software and technology in mind. You want to make sure everyone is on the same page. Be mindful to choose a medical billing company that knows what they are doing and has done it over and over again with great results. It’s important that clients and patients enjoy working with them. Don’t let a particular speciality stop you from reaching out to a great company, they may be prepared and positioned to take on the challenge.
