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Medical Office Billing Software --Which is Best For Your Practice?

Researching your medical office billing software options will be a time consuming process--but not doing your homework now may result in your choosing the wrong medical claims billing software for your practice and causing numerous claim problems for you in the future. Spending the time to really research your medical billing software choices and selecting the best software package for your office is well worth the effort.

Most of the leading medical office billing software should at least enable you to do insurance claims filing (both electronic and by paper), patient billing, scheduling, as well as provide detailed reporting and accounts receivables.Many medical billing software packages will have billing options available for specific specialties such as dentists, physical therapists, chiropractors, DME or mental health providers. A growing number of medical practice billing software package s offer an electronic medical records (EMR) management option which is becoming a very popular service.

Medical Office Billing Software Package

As if you didn't have enough decisions to make, you will also need to wade into the debate of whether PC based software or Web based software is best for your health care practice or medical billing service. Here are some of the pros and cons of each:

PC BASED SOFTWARE This is the traditional PC or client based medical office billing software which has been aroundfor years and is still the most widely used.

PROS:

  • Control--The medical office billing software is actually on your computer so if the software company goes out of business you still able to continue billing your claims in most cases. (Although you would not have any technical support should you havea problem with your software).

  • No monthly fees--Typically you would only have a reasonable yearly and/or support fee and potentially an additional charge if your medical office billing software vendor releases a newer version.

  • Not dependent on the internet- Especially beneficial if you live in an area that does not have reliable high speed internet access to.

  • CONS:

  • Larger upfront costs--While the cost of medical practice billing software varies significantly, the initial investment can be thousands with some being well over $10,000

  • Limited access to data--It is far more difficult for your doctors to have access to their data. This often requires frequent calls from the doctors or their patients needing information about an insurance claim payment or a patient's balance. It also requires you to supply more weeklyand/or monthly practice management reports for your doctors.

  • Installing and maintaining software--You will be responsible for installing the software and any updates and patches. You will also need to perform manual data backups at your office and secure the data to meet HIPAA standards.
  • Looking for Medical Billing Software? Get multiple quotes to find the best software for your needs:

    WEB BASED SOFTWARE With the evolution of the web based (online) software, you can now easily find a wide variety of medical office billing software that you can use to file and manage your medical claims online.

    PROS:

  • Limited upfront software fees

  • Easy access to your web based data--You and your doctors can access your records safely and securely anywhere you have a computer and high speed internet access.

  • Unlimited users--many offer this feature at little or no additional charge.

  • Check eligibility and access EOB's onlinethrough the web based software

  • No software to buy or install

  • No upgrade costs--The majority do not have additional yearly or upgrade costs, (but you know the drill, always check the fine print).

  • No server needed

  • Automated data backup online

  • Opportunity to go Paperless

  • CONS:

  • Monthly fees--The monthly fees (typically determined by the number of users) vary significantly between web based medical office billing software providers which can be cost prohibitive if you are a medical billing service and have a lot of small doctors. This may not be much of an issue if you're a sole practitioner or part of a health care practice that has a limited number of users.

  • Dependent on the internet--if your internet service goes down you no longer have access to your claims data base.

  • What do you do if your web based software company goes out of business?--In our opinion, this is the negative you really need to look at closely. Make sure you are confident that you would still be able to access you data somehow should the web based software provider suddenly go out of business.
  • MEDICAL BILLING BUSINESS PACKAGES

    You will come across companies offering what are often referred to as"turn-key" medical billing package. These typically consist of medical claim billing software combined with software training, technical support,as well as different levels of marketing assistance.

    But buyer beware! While these medical billing package deals are convenient and sound very attractive, they often come at a much higher price than you can get by buying the services separately from multiplesources (as is covered in great detail on this site). You also have the riskof paying a large upfront fee and having the company go out of business.

    Regardless of which option you choose, it is crucial that you thoroughly research each sotware company. Don't forget the old standbys such as the BetterBusiness Bureau and the Federal Trade Commission. Be sure to order a demo of each medical billing software you are considering, check references and also visit some of the medical billing forums to get additional ideas.




    Disclosure: Compensated Affiliate.You should assume that the owner of this website has an affiliate relationship and/or another material connection to the providers of goods and services mentioned on this website and may be compensated when you purchase from a provider. You should always perform due diligence before buying goods or services from anyone via the Internet or offline. Click here for more information.

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