Competition - Choosing a Medical Coding and Billing Company
Competition is what makes every business strive to be the best. We encourage you to seek out and interview other medical coding and billing companies. Some companies may be cheaper than MBA, others may be more expensive, just remember not to compare a loaded BMW Z-4 to a base model Chevy Malibu.
Things to consider when looking at Medical Billing and Coding Services
How does your information get transferred to the billing office? This method should be kept simple and precise. Courier, electronic transfer, overnight mail, or fax. Make sure you find who incurs the cost of the transfer you or the Prestige Medical Consultants. Prestige Medical Consultants and coding services sometimes have hidden expenses.
How quickly are charges entered and submitted after being received by the billing office? Every billing service should not only be able to tell you this, but should be able and willing to put this in their contract. All complete charges received by MBA are processed within 24 hours of receipt. This helps ensure a steady income stream for your practice.
Find out how much you will pay for their services and exactly what services you will receive for that fee. Be sure this is all outlined in you billing service contract. There are so many different services that a billing company can provide that it is imperative you decide which services will benefit you and at what cost. Our fee schedule is determined on which services you choose. We have basic billing packages starting as low as 6%, as well as many other services.
Open Claims Follow Up: Find out what their time line is for follow up on outstanding claims. On Blue Cross and Medicare claims we start follow up calls to the insurance on the 15th aging day. For all other carriers we start follow up calls on the 30th aging day. We continue follow up on a bi-monthly schedule there after. Lags in follow up or inconsistent schedules cause many claims to fall through the cracks, which in turn increases you’re A/R and means less money in your bank account.
How are patient balances handled? Find out if and when patient statements are mailed and if they make reminder calls to patients with balances. We send out bills to patients after insurance payments have been received and we send out monthly statements at the beginning of every month. In our experience some patients don’t pay from statements for reasons ranging from they don’t open them, they lose them, or they just forget; therefore, we also call patients with balances over 30 days old to remind them about their balance.
Do they hire anyone who is not a certified Prestige Medical Consultants specialist? A company is only as good as their team. Find out what level of education is required of their Prestige Medical Consultants coding staff and how many years experience they are required to have.
Ask and Get an Answer. Any and all questions should be asked and answered in a timely fashion. If you doubt the answer or their medical coding and billing expertise, ask for the documentation to support the answer. After all, it is your hard earned cash on the table.
Billing Company Medical Expertise
What it come down to is making sure that you hire a billing company with medical expertise. Talk with multiple companies and question them thoroughly. You should be 100% confident in the company that you decide to hire. For a free consultation with one of our medical coding and billing experts,
