ReimbursementMD Blog

In the fast moving, constantly changing medical field, electronic health records (EHR) are quickly becoming a necessity for the modern practice.  An EHR system helps makes storing patient data simple, billing a breeze, and improving patient care a definite.  However, if you have already implemented an EHR you may find that what you've purchased isn't meeting your practice's needs.  There are several things you can look for to determine if your EHR is failing:

Maintaining your medical billing management internally may seem to be a good choice for your practice, many providers feel keeping billing "in house" allows them more control over both coding and billing.  However, numerous other practices have discovered the benefits of outsourcing their medical billing management to a team of professional coders and billing experts. There are three factors that signal it may be time to consider outsourcing your medical billing management:

With the electronic health records becoming more and more the industry norm, the focus for many healthcare providers has shifted to achieving meaningful use. Fulfilling meaningful use requirements is key to your business. In addition to ensuring that your EHR is being managed soundly and ethically, meaningful use helps you qualify for government incentive programs. While achieving meaningful use benchmarks can be a challenge, having solid customer support from your electronic health records management team can go a long way to getting you there. Here are just some of the many ways in which customer support is important when it comes to meaningful use.

Initial Training

Too often, healthcare providers are left to navigate EHR systems immediately after they are implemented. While doctors and staff members are skilled professionals, they don't always have the time to learn a new system on their own, with patients to see and other matters to attend to. A good partner will take the time to show your staff exactly how to use the EHR system. Healthcare Information Services makes training a priority. With your physicians and staff comfortable with the system, they'll be less likely to make mistakes that can compromise meaningful use requirements.

Keeping on Top of Updates

If you could just memorize meaningful use requirements as they stand today, attesting and qualifying for the incentives for your practice would be much more manageable. Unfortunately, government standards can change and are often updated. In addition, meaningful use is being rolled out in three stages, with the final stage set for 2015. Customer support can help you keep track of these updates and changes before they get out of hand. Let HIS worry about new rules and regulations. Our customer service will keep you informed on what you need to do to achieve meaningful use, allowing you to focus on providing quality care to your patients.

General Advice on Meaningful Use

One of the benefits of partnering with an experienced and dedicated EHR vendor is the wealth of expertise and experience they bring to the table. HIS handles EHR management for a large population of Orthopedic practices, meaning that our trusted team knows how to help you achieve meaningful use requirements. Our customer support workers are happy to advise you on things you can do as an organization to meet core set and menu set measures. Our experience makes us a trusted source for information on all aspects of meaningful use, and we're happy to help our clients.

Outsourcing your medical billing management is an important decision for any healthcare provider that shouldn't be taken lightly. As a major source of revenue for your company, you can't afford to put your medical billing into the wrong hands. If you are a physician considering getting some extra help to manage the business side of your practice, you would be wise to ask a few questions of any prospective billing service. When you do eventually find the right one, you'll see your claims success rate jump, and you'll have more time to meet with your patients.

Does the company have a proven track record?

A revenue cycle and medical billing management service is only as good as its track record. Look for a company with experience in the field and that has a high success rate for claims and appeals. Don't be afraid to ask for references. Handing over your billing should not be done lightly, and you want to make sure you make the right decision. Healthcare Information Services has been managing billing for more than 30 years. We have excellent claims rates, and we always appeal claims that are denied. With a team of dedicated professionals, we ensure that you are getting the maximum revenue you are entitled to.

Does the company employ certified professional medical coders?

Any medical billing management service that does not employ certified professional coders should be a red flag. Certified medical coders are recognized by a professional body as being experts in their field. They have rigorous training and maintain up to date knowledge of industry norms to ensure that all of your claims are filed accurately and on time. HIS employs only certified professional coders. Our team has a clean-clames rate of 98 percent, so you can be sure that we're doing everything possible to get you the reimbursements you deserve.

Does the company maintain open communication?

When it comes to revenue cycle and medical billing management, communication is one of those intangibles that is difficult to evaluate until after you have signed a contract. Nonetheless, it is an important consideration. The last thing you want is a company doing your billing that is unreachable at crucial times. At HIS, we understand the importance of open communication. We provide support for our systems and services whenever you need it, and we are committed to being available whenever you have important inquiries. Your revenue cycle and bottom-line is our top priority, and we value the trust you put in us.

Medical coders play a vital role in the daily operations of any healthcare provider. In addition to assigning codes to patients and procedures, coders must submit claims to insurers. As such a huge part of your company's revenue stream, it is crucial that these claims are accurate and timely. While all coders receive training, only certified professional coders are recognized professionally as leaders in their field. Healthcare Information Services employs only certified professional coders, ensuring that your claims and billing are processed in an expert manner.

Proven Track Record

While many non-certified coders are good at their job, there is no way to get a sense of their abilities prior to employing them. Certification means that a coder has a track record of excellence in the field. Because certification requires extra training and the completion of an exam, you know that the coder in question has been recognized by a national board or agency such as the AAPC. In addition, certified professional coders always have work experience, meaning that they already possess the knowledge to process your claims quickly and properly. Healthcare Information Services' has a clean claims rate of 98 percent, ensuring reliable streams of revenue for your company.

Current Knowledge

Part of the challenging of medical coding is that industry standards change all the time. For example, the change to ICD-10 that becomes mandatory in October, 2014 will require coders to learn and work with new sets of information. Non-certified coders have no way of staying up to date on the norms in the field. Certified coders, on the other hand, must meet educational requirements every few years to stay on top of industry changes. As a result, only certified coders have the ongoing knowledge necessary to keep your claims and billing moving properly. At Healthcare Information Services, we make sure that coders have the most current experience and knowledge.

Dedication and Ethics

Medical coders deal with sensitive information on a daily basis, such as patient records and medical files. It is important that coders are committed to preserving the confidentiality of this information, and following ethics guidelines generally. Certification means that a coder has been recognized by a professional body as committed to upholding these ethical principles. The certified professional medical coders at Healthcare Information Services are dedicated to handling your patients' sensitive material with competence and professionalism. When you hire our coders, you can rest assured that information will be used only for the purposes explicitly outlined by you.

This document has been prepared by Merge Healthcare Incorporated and Center for Diagnostic Imaging for their customers. ©Copyright 2011 Merge Healthcare Incorporated and Center for Diagnostic Imaging. Unauthorized use, reproduction, or disclosure is prohibited.

Meaningful use is everywhere, and it’s hard to navigate all of the rules and regulations on your own.  HIS is committed to helping you better understand meaningful use for radiology, that’s why, when we came across this great resource by Merge Healthcare Incorporated and Center for Diagnostic Imaging, we had to share!

This how-to guide was created to help radiologists comply with the HITECH Act.  

Although it's more than a year away and the timing of any delay is not yet set in stone, the mandatory switch for healthcare providers from ICD-9 to ICD-10 will have a lasting impact. As one of the largest changes to ever hit the industry, healthcare providers need to be ready for this huge industry shift. With errors in coding and denied claims already a major burden on many companies providing healthcare, the switch to ICD-10 will only exacerbate the situation.

Collections are the lifeblood of a healthcare provider's revenue stream. Without a proper system for collections in place, you'd be amazed at how quickly your profits can dry up. One of the challenges when it comes to healthcare billing is that service providers have to take care of the paperwork on both ends, dealing with patient payments and insurance claims. With so many balls in the air at the same time, things can fall through the cracks, potentially costing your company millions in lost revenue. Take control of your healthcare billing and make the process as efficient as possible.

If you are a healthcare provider that still has not adopted electronic health records (EHR), now is the time. With technological advances, we are reaching a tipping point where companies need to modernize or get left behind. Healthcare Information Services offers EHR solutions that increase efficiency, maximize revenues and improve patient outcomes. Here are seven ways your company will benefit immediately from EHR:

Orthopedic practices live and die by their revenue cycle management. When bad management occurs, money is lost and it is only a matter of time before the business' survival at stake. With so many complex procedures going on in an orthopedic practice, it is crucial to take control of your revenue cycle management.