Medical billing outsourcing is becoming rather popular today. There is an overwhelming amount of billing that goes on in the United States on a day to day basis. It is estimated that nearly 25% of all healthcare companies will outsource their billing within the next ten years. It is not shock since physicians are now seeing the tough decisions that go into ICD-10 billing. Today, a biller has to be ICD-10 certified and know a lot about utilization management, revenue cycle management and benefit verification.
If you are trying to save money, outsourcing to countries outside of the USA may be a good idea. However, you must look at all of the legal aspects first. For starters, all medical coders that work with USA physicians must be certified in ICD-10. If you are not certified, then you should not be coding. It is actually illegal to do so. The software that is being used must be 100% HIPAA compliant. If it does not comply with HIPAA law, then you cannot use it.
I can tell you that coding in ICD-10 is difficult. You must have a good understanding of the English language and be able to write down specific treatments before an insurance company will pay you anything on your claim. Many claims today are being sent back 2, 5 and 10 times. You may not see payment for 90 days or more. Sometimes you will never see payment if the claim is not submitted correctly. You must have knowledgeable people working on your claims that have a good foundation of ICD-10.
Many outsourced companies in India promise you larger returns on your claims and a 40% savings on your overhead costs. This may be true. However, if their service does not comply with the law, then it will not even be worth your time. Before choosing to work with an overseas medical billing company, make sure that you hire an attorney. Have the attorney check on all applicable laws. There must be a strong contract that will be honored by both countries should someone's privacy be violated. You can face some serious fines and possibly lose your practice if you violate HIPAA law.
The most popular overseas companies are in India. You may receive a phone call at some point of someone offering you savings of 40% to 50%. However, will this come at a price? You must take into fact a lot of important decisions. They will have access to your patient's records and company affairs. You must also see what he international laws are concerning their responsibilities if something should go wrong? Could you sue them? When it comes to medical billing, the laws must be obeyed at all times. Many overseas companies do not care about USA laws since they live under a different set of laws in their own country.
If you are trying to save money, outsourcing to countries outside of the USA may be a good idea. However, you must look at all of the legal aspects first. For starters, all medical coders that work with USA physicians must be certified in ICD-10. If you are not certified, then you should not be coding. It is actually illegal to do so. The software that is being used must be 100% HIPAA compliant. If it does not comply with HIPAA law, then you cannot use it.
I can tell you that coding in ICD-10 is difficult. You must have a good understanding of the English language and be able to write down specific treatments before an insurance company will pay you anything on your claim. Many claims today are being sent back 2, 5 and 10 times. You may not see payment for 90 days or more. Sometimes you will never see payment if the claim is not submitted correctly. You must have knowledgeable people working on your claims that have a good foundation of ICD-10.
Many outsourced companies in India promise you larger returns on your claims and a 40% savings on your overhead costs. This may be true. However, if their service does not comply with the law, then it will not even be worth your time. Before choosing to work with an overseas medical billing company, make sure that you hire an attorney. Have the attorney check on all applicable laws. There must be a strong contract that will be honored by both countries should someone's privacy be violated. You can face some serious fines and possibly lose your practice if you violate HIPAA law.
The most popular overseas companies are in India. You may receive a phone call at some point of someone offering you savings of 40% to 50%. However, will this come at a price? You must take into fact a lot of important decisions. They will have access to your patient's records and company affairs. You must also see what he international laws are concerning their responsibilities if something should go wrong? Could you sue them? When it comes to medical billing, the laws must be obeyed at all times. Many overseas companies do not care about USA laws since they live under a different set of laws in their own country.
About the Author:
Ideal Billing Solutions provides health coding services to organizations in all 50 states. We are ICD-10 certified and have years of experience working with doctors, rehabilitation centers and all kinds of health practices. Hiring a health coding service takes time because you have to find one that works best for your practice.
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