| Physicians
Practice's
Ask an Expert
is a question and answer forum featuring
leading practice management experts who may or may not be
employed by Physicians Practice. On average, Physicians Practice
receives 250 questions per month from physicians, office managers,
office administrators and others. Have a question about the
operation of your practice? Visit www.PhysiciansPractice.com.
Your question will be answered within three business days.
All questions below were answered by Elizabeth Woodcock of
Physicians Practice.
Q
How
should I handle credentialing?
A Credentialing should be handled
by the billing office staff because they recognize how vital
it is that a physician be a credentialed — and income-generating
— force for the practice.
Be sure to start the credentialing process for new physicians
as soon as you’ve made the decision to add them. If
you wait until they actually arrive, you are wasting time.
Finally, consider making use of credentialing software. Such
programs automate primary source verification, application
completion and the like.
Q
How should I choose among companies
providing outsourced billing services?
| A |
- Find a company
that asks you the right questions. Anyone interested
in the good of your practice will ask questions to
find the root of the problem.
- Pick a company
that can produce regular, detailed results, such as
a recap of charges, referring physician reports or
prompt unpaid claims follow-up.
- It is essential
to gauge the reputation of the company. Check references
from physicians as well as other companies, both large
and small.
- In terms of
location, choose a company located close to home so
it’s easy to get in touch with them and have
face-to-face meetings, if you need to.
|
Q
We are thinking about bringing our
billing in-house. What tips do you have for getting started?
A You’ll
need to consider the people, systems and the processes. Hire
at least one person who is familiar with physician billing
and knows how to file claims. This is your revenue stream,
so check references thoroughly. You will need practice management
or billing software if you don’t already have it. There
are many vendors listed in the Products and Services area
on the Physicians Practice Web site, www.PhysiciansPractice.com.
At the same time, you’ll want to look at the process:
Who will do what and when? Look at each of the following processes:
- coding,
- charge
capture,
- charge
review (making sure the claims will go out clean),
- claims
submission (electronic and/or paper),
- payment
posting (electronic and/or manual),
- insurance
follow-up,
- patient
follow-up and
-
collections (you’ll likely want to contract with a
collections agency).
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