Medical billing is a complex procedure of billing and collecting payments for the health care service provided to the patient. To run a profitable medical business, hospitals and other health care facilities should follow an effective way of collecting reimbursement. Electronic medical billing is vital to run a successful practice.

The cash flow in any health care facility depends on fast and accurate billing. This is a tedious process which requires attention to minute details. Accuracy and efficiency are very essential for medical billing. Any error occurred in the data entry will finally end up in denial of the claim. This not only causes loss but also waste of time and energy of the health care professionals. In paper claiming denial is as high as 30%. Electronic medical billing has reduced denials to a greater extent. However electronic billing cannot prevent rejections if not performed by a skilled professional.

HIPAA, health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act requires most of the claims to be done via electronic filing. As soon as a patient enters a health care facility, office personnel takes the personal details such as name, age, sex, address and insurance company of the patient. Before giving any service, the health care processional checks the eligibility of the patient electronically for the planned treatment with the insurance company. This is known as "health care eligibility and benefit response" transaction. Upon treating the patient, medical billers submit a claim form that is customized for each patient to the insurance company and insurance company acknowledges that the claim has been received and will be processed. Once the claim is processed, the payer responds which all claims can be reimbursed or denied with reasoning. With the help of electronic billing, all these procedures are done very fast. So, the doctors will be reimbursed in 10-15 days, where as paper claiming takes months together to get the payment. Electronic medical billing has made the back office job almost paperless and also helps to reduce the number of employees needed in the non-clinical department.

Paper filing requires inventory, postage, phone calls and employee expenses. Since electronic billing is much faster and efficient, the staff requirement is greatly reduced. Electronic billing needs software and computer. When the advantages are considered, spending on computer and software is really worth.

One of the drawbacks of electronic claiming is technical problems. Medical office personnel may not be able to fix the glitches in the software. Electronic medical billing is a good option for those who have already established and have a great number of patients, so that they can afford the electronic medical billing software. Otherwise, the cost of the software itself can make this an unprofitable business.


Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Shawn_Manaher