Is Your Outsourced Billing Company Outsourcing Their Billing Services?

By Tory Smith, Director, Sales & Marketing

MedHelp, Inc., Medical Management Specialists

More Mental Health Articles

Is Your Outsourced Billing Company Outsourcing Their Billing Services?

While more physicians are choosing to outsource their medical billing and revenue cycle needs, do you really know who is actually providing the service to your practice?

Without a doubt, all third party billing companies provide a valuable service to providers who need their help in submitting claims properly and efficiently. But, keep in mind that these types of firms vary greatly. Many perform a wide variety of services from simply organizing claims for submission to government and private insurance payers to managing the entire business of provider practices.

In addition to ensuring that health care providers get paid for their services, billing professionals who work in a third-party billing setting usually offer a wide range of functions. In fact, they perform many of the same extensive duties as an in-house medical biller such as…

Managing patient demographic data and incurred charges

Prepare insurance claims

Follow up on unpaid claims

Post payments

Bill self-pays

However, some billers choose to outsource this function to save money and put the onus on another entity to do the work. You should look for the following telltale signs if you suspect your medical biller is located outside of the continental United States

Be wary of very low rates (3-5%). Typical charges range between 7-9% of what is collected.

Overseas billers are not subjected to HIPPA compliance standards. You will have no legal recourse if your patient information is stolen or mismanaged. Ensure the vendor is HIPPA compliant.

Contact. Can you reach them if you should need them?Are their hours of operation consistent and can you depend on them to be there during your regular business hours?

References. Ask for at least three references and call them to find out if they are satisfied with the vendor's services.

Where is the work done. Be sure to ask your vendor where their work done is done and if you could visit their local offices.

Partnering with a third-party medical billing company can help providers increase cash flow and productivity, as well as enable them to concentrate on health care services, not on collecting bills. Do your due diligence, and remember, this is your practice, and your livelihood depends on the revenue that it brings in.