Health is an important asset to human beings. Patients, physicians, medical billing companies, insurance companies, clearinghouses, all are connected in one way or another to offer quality services. Physicians are then reimbursed for their services and that’s how the process flows.
Patients are particularly free from the burden of paying for healthcare expenses by themselves when they get a healthcare plan. They just have to pay their premiums, and the rest is the work of medical billing outsourcing companies.
In recent times, the payment system in the US healthcare system has especially been under scrutiny to facilitate patients and clinicians alike.
Due to inflation and in the name of empowering patients, costs have gone up severely. Deductibles and copayments have increased, and patients can’t do anything about it as they have to maintain their monthly healthcare package in check.
Increasing expenses for care services have left patients financially vulnerable. According to an estimate, patients paid around 35% of the medical bill charges in 2019. Looking into it, this percentage is quite high as compared to the previous years.
The patients have to endure surprise medical bills, and medical billing services are not to blame for this. Stats show that two-thirds of American adults, have savings less than $1000, and it is not enough to pay surprise bills sent by medical billing companies. Believe it or not, surprise medical bills are one of the causes of making families bankrupt.
The problem is huge. If patients are unable to pay for the rendered services, how will physicians survive? Medical billing services will not be able to get clear bills for physicians. Moreover, the inability to pay bills and deductibles has increased seventeen percent from 2012 to 2016.
The US government has also noticed this issue, and there are multiple solutions into consideration.
If authorities take proper action, negative payment cycles can be reversed.
One way to restrict the ever-increasing cost factor in the healthcare industry is to offer customized/personalized experiences to patients.
Another aspect that needs to be implemented as soon as possible by medical billing services is to estimate the insurance plan beforehand.
There is nothing to worry about if the healthcare plan covers all the services or respective treatments. However, it can be tough if the healthcare plan does not include the respective service. Therefore, it is better to figure out the insurance plan prior to the process for the claim compilation.
A professional medical billing service provider says a lot about their professionalism through their service. Their practice is to read all the guidelines and exceptions when the patient registers for a treatment. They inform patients about their financial responsibility, which eventually paves a path for streamlined revenue cycle management and a payment system without surprise bills.
The healthcare and billing process can be confusing for patients. A professional medical billing company on behalf of physicians should demonstrate each payment obligation clearly to patients. Right from the appointment session to the final medical billing step, everything should be clear to exclude the surprise element.
Estimate Healthcare Expenses Accurately
The first step of accurate billing services is to estimate the cost of healthcare.
Medical billing outsourcing companies should break down each step for physicians to give them an idea of what patients can bear from their health plan and whatnot.
Listing payment options is also useful for patients when it comes to out-of-pocket expenses.
Another suggestion is to incentivize those healthcare providers and medical billing companies who ensure quality without surprise bills.
It will encourage everyone to take measures to empower patients while improving their revenue cycle management.
Providers who work in efforts to improve the quality of healthcare and reduce surprise billing can enjoy a significant improvement in revenue cycle management. One can’t expect a sudden change in the healthcare industry, but a seamless billing process without surprise bills is only possible via offering tailored payment models based on the patient’s financial situation.
