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Why Is Outsourcing Medical Coding The Best Option?

April 21, 2015

outsource_medical_coding_2Many practices struggle with the decision about who should handle the medical coding and billing. It could be done by someone in-house, or it can be given to a small local company. It can be outsourced to a large firm specialized in medical billing, but wouldn’t you rather keep that kind of job closer to home? It is important to make an informed decision, so knowing all of your options, have you taken a close look at why outsourcing medical coding is the best option?

In many small practices, medical coding and billing are done by the same single employee. Many people who go to school to be medical secretaries or medical assistants have some basic knowledge of coding and billing. Those are the people you’re most likely to hire in your practice to do the billing because of their versatility. They can do the billing and help with patients which can be very beneficial if your office is every swamped. The problem is that basic knowledge of medical billing practices is really not enough to get you the highest possible revenues for providing the best patient care. Something is going to be missed. Since the patients are right there and you’re supervising that carefully, they’re likely to get the most attention.

Certified professional medical coders don’t need to learn the same patient interaction and clinical skills of a medical assistant. They focus on anatomy, physiology, and medical terminology as those relate to medical procedures and coding. They take the details of a visit and diagnosis to distill them to the codes and modifiers that get sent to the insurance company for payment. They know, through training and experience, when to bundle codes and when leaving them separate gets the best results.  

Improperly trained or inadequately supervised coders could miss things that you could have been paid for or code things incorrectly so that you end up not being paid at all. If you’re doing the billing in-house, who will correct those errors? You have your own specialty and are focused on delivering the best patient care. When you outsource to a large billing firm, the certified professional coders are less likely to make mistakes because they are supervised by other coders who may have decades of experience in the field.   

The dedicated medical billing personnel can then enter those carefully prepared and checked codes into the software or website used by a specific insurance company to handle their billing. Each one has different quirks and coverage. These days many people have multiple insurances to bill on a single claim. A large billing firm has the technology and practice to ensure that each claim is processed efficiently and submitted correctly every time. The experienced medical billers do more than just submit claims. They appeal any denials, which can happen for many reasons, and collect payments from all parties. This ensures that your revenue stream is as deep as possible and flows smoothly to you.

Feel free to contact us at any time with your questions and concerns about the medical coding and billing process. Our team at M-Scribe can show you how much we can help your practice focus on serving patients while we focus on getting you paid promptly and accurately.  

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