Making the Medical Billing Outsourcing Decision – Points to Consider
To make the medical billing outsourcing decision, consider if it will give you a strategic competitive advantage and allow you to serve your patients better.
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Should I outsource medical billing or do it in-house? This is one of the important choices that physicians must make. Like all business decisions, it all boils down to choosing the option that will help you achieve a strategic competitive advantage and serve your patients better. Here are some key points to consider before you make the medical billing outsourcing decision.
Cost savings: This should be the major driver of your decision, but by no means the only one. Consider the potential cost savings versus the loss of control over the billing process. Small practices have to manage many functions and billing is a complex and time consuming process which, if not managed properly, will result in losses. Compare in-house billing staff costs, including ongoing training costs, with that of hiring an outside company. An established medical billing service enjoys considerable economies of scale and these benefits will be passed on to your practice. They will be able to provide the highest levels of service AT AFFORDABLE COSTS to increase your collections, and reduce rejections and denials. They would also take care of software upgrades and technical issues.
Expertise in revenue cycle management: You need experts with the resources for efficient claim processing. Compare the skills of your in-house billing personnel to those of the team in the medical billing company. It’s likely that you will find that the company will provide access to superior expertise in the field. Their team will include experienced billing and collections specialists, insurance verification specialists, and AAPC-certified coders. You need to consider whether it is feasible for your practice to hire such comprehensive internal staff to obtain the same level of knowledge that the outsourcing company can provide.
Streamlined workflow: Is your in-house billing process working smoothly and are your staff following all the right steps? Is patient eligibility verified before the point-of-service? Are there delays in claim follow-up? Are charges being captured accurately? Poor workflow results in errors in claim submission and payment delays. In reliable medical billing companies, these important steps are never missed.
Focus on your core tasks: Will outsourcing your billing tasks give you more time for your core task of patient care? It’s likely that it will. With an expert managing your revenue cycle, you wouldn’t have to worry about your bottom
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line. Moreover, your staff would become focused on the work and reach their full potential, which will promote overall efficiency. 
New provider: Outsourcing is a great solution for new providers as it allows them to leverage expertise right away. Growing expertise internally and experiencing the benefits of the acquired skill set would take several years.
To sum up: make the medical billing outsourcing decision by considering not only cost and economies of scale but also whether it will free up resources and capital for other areas of your practice, its impact on your workflow, and whether you will gain from improved focus on your core tasks.
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Phone: 1-800-670-2809