Medical billing is a time-consuming and arduous job for small healthcare practices. Therefore, a number of small healthcare practitioners seek outsourcing their medical billing duties to expert Medical Billing Companies.
Outsourcing to a professional medical billing company reduces operational costs as well as save valuable time to a greater extent. As with many advantages of outsourcing medical billing services it does have some disadvantage too. For instance, it lets you lose the charge of work under construction.
Advantages of outsourcing to Medical Billing Companies
When you outsource medical billing you bring the jotted down advantages to your practice:
- Pay more attention to the Care delivery process
Treating the patient with full attention demands sufficient time and a stress-free mind. Rendering of this fact, the care delivery might be compromised if the physician has to do the billing job on his own also. Outsourcing medical billing services allow physicians to devote their valuable time to their patients to provide the maximum possible satisfaction by minimizing the burden of medical billing related tasks. It also fosters a considerable flow of patients. A small healthcare practice can take most advantage from outsourcing since it requires growing continuously without any hurdle and with smoothness. Moreover, small healthcare practices are unable to hire a large number of expert medical billers on board. Therefore, this is the best approach for them.
- Acquire Flawless Billing Services
Well-seasoned expert medical billers make sure precise and timely submission of your claims. The main aim of Medical Billing Companies is to provide accurate and flawless medical billing services. They responsibly recruit expert staff members to deliver best possible services. Adding to it, they keep on updating their staff and tools to provide up to the minute medical billing services. Hence, the use of proper expertise and right tools decreases the rate of denial and rejections in claims. Moreover, these companies also keep their client aware of the current status of their revenue cycle by regular and comprehensive reporting.
iii. Cut Down Operational Expenses
Outsourcing medical billing reduces operational expenses and saves a lot of your cash and other resources. It cuts down the expense to set up a medical billing office within your clinic, to hire expert medical billers, to upgrade the software and tools required to perform medical billing and so. You only have to pay for the claim under analysis.
- Consistent Flow of Cash
You might have to wait for submitting a claim since the medical biller you recruited is on leave or unable to work due to varied reasons. Interlude in the billing procedures can cause a drop down in your revenue cycle and can slow down the cash flow. Outsourcing medical billing offers a smooth cash flow since you find the experts on hand. A consistent flow of cash is vital for the development of your practice.
- Up to the minute services
The rules and regulations regarding medical billing keep on changing, hence, medical billing services ask for upgrading as with the changing of the rules. Following the right and most recent rules to perform medical billing in a precise manner is a complex and attention-requiring task. Outsourcing medical billing saves you from all the hassle since Medical Billing Companies strictly observe the recent rules and regulations and keep on updating their tools and tactics. On the other hand, for a small healthcare practice keeping up with the ever-changing rules and regulations can be troublesome and hectic.
Disadvantages of outsourcing to Medical Billing Companies
Following are some disadvantages of outsourcing medical billing:
- Loss of Direct Charge
Outsourcing medical billing lets you lose the charge since you are not having a direct charge over the medical billing service provider. The medical manager at your healthcare practice has to trust the medical biller which can be risky at some point.
- Less Satisfaction of Patients
In-house billing provides a direct route to the patients where they can easily make payments and discuss payment related issues with billers. Outsourcing makes the entire process an indirect one due to which patients are less likely to satisfy wholly.
iii. No Transparency in Pricing
You might have to bear some unrevealed charges due to price non-transparency when outsourcing to a medical billing company.
- Other Barriers
Outsourcing medical billing can also reason some other limitations such as insufficient access to information regarding claim status, inadequate communication between the medical manager and the medical billing services provider. On the other hand, if you rely on in-housing medical billing, you get a direct access to the service provider with whom you can discuss whenever and whatever you want in a relatively easy manner.
Medical Billing Companies come up with knowledgeable experts, befitting tools and expertise which can save both your time and money. However, you might have to have some losses also. But, the advantages t outsourcing to a medical billing company for a small healthcare practice is quite considerable and reasonable. They can’t afford to establish plus maintain an in-house medical billing setup. But, it is more practical for them to pay for each claim submitted to some professional medical billing company. In case of large practices and greater healthcare organizations, an amalgamation of both the approaches can be the best fit. A mix of both the options can bring highly favorable and sought-after outcomes for large healthcare practices. They can increase the rate of reimbursements as well as give a great boost to their revenue cycle by opting for both ways at the same time. It is logical for a large practice since large healthcare practices have the means to pave the way for both the roads. In this way, they can ensure uninterrupted cash flow and an improved financial status of their practice.
Now, it is all up to you and up to the true requirements of your practice whether to go for outsourcing to a medical billing company or not. Keep all the advantages and disadvantages in mind prior to making a suitable decision.
