Comparing In-House and Outsourced Medical Billing

Most medical practitioners would agree that medical billing can often be time-consuming. After all, you need to ensure that all information is correct and triple-checking is a must in order to be properly compensated. Because of this, many physicians get sidetracked from their main goal—taking care of their patients. Even though medical billing can be a tedious task, it is an important process as the stability of your practice depends on them. It is one of the reasons why some medical practice and healthcare organizations entrust their medical billing to outsourced medical billing instead of doing in-house medical billing. 

Difference Between In-House and Outsourced Medical Billing

There are really no definite deciding factors as to which method is better when it comes to medical billing operations. Each method has its own advantages and disadvantages. If you're confused between the two, here are some of the factors that make in-house medical billing and outsourced medical billing different from each other. 

• In-house Billing

The in-house method for processing insurance claims has a number of steps that every practice needs to go through. The medical staff enters the patient’s information into the medical billing software program from the superbill collected during the patient’s visit. The healthcare provider then submits the claim to a medical billing clearinghouse. Then, the claim is verified, the claim is scrubbed for errors, and it is sent to the payer. The provider can save time and money as well as reduce the rejection rate by not directly submit claims to the payer. 

A notification is sent to the clearinghouse once a claim is rejected or accepted. They will then notify the healthcare provider of the status of the claim. Should the claim be rejected, the provider’s medical staff will gather the information needed for the billing and resubmit the claim. It is important to take note that an additional fee is charged for each claim submission even if it’s just a minor correction. 

• Outsourced Medical Billing

The process of outsourcing your billing operation is more straightforward. All of the day-to-day billing operations would be handled off-site. When you employ a medical billing company, all of the tasks related to billing and sending claims would be handled by a team of well-trained medical billers. 

All the superbills and other documents are sent electronically to the medical billing company. It takes care of everything that is associated with the medical billing process. They do the data entry, claim submissions, and even doing a follow-up to all rejected claims. They also send invoices directly to patients and pursue delinquent accounts. However, it is important to take note that most medical billing companies bill their clients with 5% to 10% of their collection. 

Medical billing outsourcing would be best if you don’t want to manage an administrative team. If you are already using EHR software, the process would be a lot easier. The information collected from a patient’s superbill is stored in the EHR and can then be electronically transmitted to the medical billing company. Because there would be no second round of data entry, accuracy is improved. 

Partner with DrCatalyst

There are a lot of factors to consider when choosing the right medical billing approach for your practice. It is highly critical that you factor in the individual costs and preferences when choosing whether or not it is best for your practice to outsource its medical billing operation. Should you choose to hire a medical billing company, make sure that their team is composed of efficient, well-trained, and amenable medical staff. 

If you are currently thinking about outsourcing your medical billing, DrCatalyst can help. From the front desk to the back office, we offer end-to-end revenue cycle management services. Let’s set up a time for you to chat with one of our billing specialists to see how our organization can help with your billing needs.