How Medical Coding Companies Can Improve Revenue Cycle Management
Modern revenue cycle management depends on the definitive accuracy of medical coding. In the present era, the concept of value-based care has significantly transformed the way of US healthcare. The contemporary concept emphasizes quality care instead of quantity. Patient experiences are now more valuable than ever before. Thus, proper diagnosis is essential to excel in a value-based model, and it is only possible with the right coding practices.
Moreover, the responsibility of medical coders is high, as their minor mistake could be an expensive call for your medical practice. It also brings the importance of accurate coding into the spotlight. The surge in demand for healthcare services among the aging population is a well-known fact, leading to an increased reliance on medical billing companies to effectively manage RCM and streamline billing procedures.
Choosing whether to develop an in-house medical coding team or outsource coding to a third-party coding professional is a critical decision for any healthcare practice. Working with third-party coding expertise is usually the best option due to the benefits it offers.
Here’s why you should consider medical coding outsourcing.
1. Latest Certifications
Medical coders must stay current on the latest coding systems, laws, and best practices. They must also fulfill continuing education requirements and maintain up-to-date credentials. Through their websites, blogs, email lists, webinars, seminars, and other tools, they can also stay informed about updates from government agencies, healthcare organizations, and other groups.
Maintaining certifications and updates demands a major time investment. At times, medical coding undergoes substantial transformations following major upgrades. The burden of ensuring compliance with these standards is lifted when you hire third-party medical coding specialists.
Medical coding outsourcing businesses will handle these concerns for you, and you can be confident that the coders working on your charts have current credentials, abilities, and understanding.
2. Consistent Staffing Levels
In the case of an in-house team, you depend on your in-house development team to handle all of your coding requirements. When you only have your team to work with, you possess little flexibility to adapt to shifting circumstances. Sometimes the volume of code required exceeds the capacity of your in-house staff. Other times, your team may be understaffed because one of your coders goes on vacation, becomes ill, or even quits. This might cause coding backlogs and payment delays.
Alternatively, medical coding companies have a huge workforce of medical coders and can adapt to variations in the volume of work your clinic assigns them. They also don’t have to worry about employee absences because they have other developers to rotate in. When you engage with contract medical coding firms, you can be confident that there will always be enough coders to complete the job on time.
3. Cost-Effectiveness
Outsourcing medical coding is sometimes more affordable than hiring and keeping an in-house team of coders. Employing medical coders, particularly those with specializations and advanced abilities, is costly. Outsourcing gives you access to high-quality coders at a lesser cost.
The AAPC reports that medical coders earn an average annual salary of $52,411. Certified coders and those with more experience will receive better compensation. Of course, salary is not the sole cost of hiring a medical coder. Other expenses will include employer-paid taxes and perks such as health insurance, retirement plans, and paid time off.
These costs will be about 35% of a coder’s salary. In addition to the expenses for office space and supplies, there are intangible costs such as hiring, training, supervising, licensing, and insurance. The time and resources you put into hiring, training, overseeing, and developing an in-house coding team come with their own opportunity costs.
When you outsource medical coding, the company you engage with is accountable for all of these costs. Because they operate on a larger scale, have more experience with medical coding, and make coding their major priority, they can often supply these services to practices for less than it would cost the practices to do all of their own coding.
4. Patient-Centric Approach
Medical coding in-house diverts time and resources away from other activities. This is especially true if physicians conduct their own coding, but training and managing an in-house team also requires a significant amount of time and resources. There is a significant opportunity cost associated with performing your own medical coding.
Outsourcing your coding frees up your time to focus on vital duties. This means your team will have more time to focus on patients, which will assist in improving the quality of care. When you engage with a reputable coding business, you will still receive accurate coding and timely compensation, but you will not have to devote time away from the core of your practice to achieve those objectives.
5. Scalability
You have greater flexibility and scalability when working with a contract medical coding company than when you hire an internal team. There is a cap on the number of programmers in an internal team. A lengthy process is involved in hiring more staff. These coders, with insufficient experience and skill, may struggle to manage unexpected situations without further education.
In contrast, outsourcing grants you entry to a broad pool of coding specialists. You can practically instantly scale your team up or down with this access. With less work, you can also scale up your coding ability more permanently as your practice expands over time.
6. Security and Compliance
All healthcare organizations prioritize security and regulatory compliance. Medical coding and billing require strong data security and disaster recovery methods to defend against data loss and other cyber events. In addition, you must verify compliance with HIPAA and other standards.
A professional coding company will comprehend the security and compliance risks associated with your coding requirements. While you should always take reasonable safeguards, you can be confident that your coding business is also taking the necessary procedures.
