In a perfect world, medical providers would simply focus on delivering the best possible service to all their patients, and the financial aspects of their practice would take care of themselves. Happy patients and a staff with high morale would be sufficient to ensure an adequate revenue stream. However, some medical practices could do better with how they handle their business operations in terms of efficiency, denied claims, and unpaid claims. Here are the three biggest reasons why most medical practices typically fail when it comes to maximizing their revenue.

If you are about to take the leap and start using medical billing software in your organization, you should soon expect to see your staff working much more quickly and efficiently. Your patients will appreciate the time you save them when you automate many of the processes of a modern medical office. With that in mind, here are five interesting facts about medical billing software for you to consider.

Every time there is an advance in technology or a new development in how to perform a common task, savvy business managers will take notice and try to incorporate the improvements into their workflow.

While the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) gave HIPAA-covered entities a reprieve by extending the date for ICD-10 implementation from October 1, 2014 to October 1, 2015, healthcare organizations that use medical billing software need to start the process of becoming ICD-10 complaint if they have not already done so. This transition requires upgrading or replacing current medical billing software in order to accommodate the new ICD-10 codes and training the staff how use the new software, in addition to how to do ICD-10 coding. Moreover, CMS recommends 12 months of internal testing of the ICD-10 compliant systems and 11 months of external testing with business partners. Furthermore, healthcare providers need to make contingency plans in the event there are problems with third party payers during the switch to ICD-10 codes.

One of the most time consuming and tedious aspects of any medical practice is submitting claims to third party payers and then sending bills to patients for any remaining balance. Given the detail need to claims correctly, it is almost impossible for even a solo provider to complete the forms manually. Medical billing software ensures claims have the information required for seamlessly submitting and tracking claims so the provider receives reimbursement for services in a timely manner. Given the variety of medical billing software on the market, it is important to find the medical billing tools right for your practice or revenue cycle management (RCM) firm.

One of the greatest time sinks and cost centers in the management of any medical practice is the billing of patients and third-party payers for services. Each of the different health insurance providers has slightly varied billing practices, which increases the complexity of filing claims. These variations, along with the intricacies of ICD-10 coding, make the billing process highly prone to errors when claim processing is done manually. These errors can disrupt the cash flow of the practice due to denied or delayed claims. Additionally, billing errors are also one of the triggers for payment recoupment during Medicaid and Medicare audits.

Like other medical professionals whose practices serve primarily Medicare patients, cardiologists are concerned about reduced reimbursements. Adding to the concerns about financial viability is the trend of many insurance companies to reduce the contracted rates that they pay their in-network providers. In this challenging economic environment, cardiologists need to take advantage of the benefits of practice management software so that they improve collection and streamline the claims processes.

Given the multidisciplinary nature of pain management, it is a monumental task to try to do the billing manually. Medical billing clerks do not only have to be able to apply the correct encounter codes for each different professional providing services to patients, but they also the disparities in the ways that third party payers authorize and reimburse for services among the various disciplines. Medical billing software can simply the process of submitting claims for pain management practices.

As medical practitioners continue to be challenged to improve service outcomes and deliverables in the face of rising costs and shrinking budgets, many clinicians are realizing the financial benefits of online medical billing software.

As business continues on into the 21st century, applying new technology to day to day operations becomes essential for a company to compete. Billing and collections in particular can be a nightmare for any type of business, but with the high costs and potential for privacy violations, medical billing is an even trickier situation. For that reason, it is recommended to use an online billing software or service that specifically caters to medical practitioners.