The healthcare system has drastically changed in the last couple of years. With virtual care and the rapid adoption of billing and coding technologies, this is a transformation time for the healthcare industry.
After Covid put forth new challenges for healthcare practices, practitioners can’t help wondering what the new trends in medical billing will follow to overcome these challenges and help the industry to see a boom once again.
As we enter 2023, it’s time to look into some latest trends and innovations in medical billing services adopted by the top medical billing companies in Maryland and other best states for healthcare.
Trends and Innovations in Medical Billing Services 2023
Here are the five trends to follow in the healthcare billing services that will revamp the system and facilitate better revenue for the coming years.
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Autonomous Coding:
After Covid shook the world to its core, like any other industry, healthcare was also affected, with operating margins decreasing by 80% compared to the pre-pandemic times. These figures indicate that the healthcare industry needs automation technology to minimize its operating expense in billing services to be profitable.
Normally it takes 5 to 6 days to code manually, while automating the process does the job within 24 hours, enabling the practice to increase runways and receive reimbursement for the rendered services in less time. This drastically reduces claim submission and reimbursement time and allows the organization to sail through financial hardships swiftly.
Additionally, the automated coding ensures minimum coding errors with less billing time, warranting timely submissions. Hence, automation prevents revenue leakage and improves the RCM while expanding the facility.
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Cybersecurity Compliance:
With the increasing dependency on technology, such as the introduction of telemedicine, telehealth, and billing staff working from home, cybersecurity is imperative. Using unsecured networks and healthcare providers overlooking minor details can expose patients’ data to cyber threats.
Cybersecurity is an important issue that practices are often taken for granted. Between 2002 and 2022, nearly 5,150 data theft were reported to the HHS’ Office for Civil Rights. This has resulted in the impermissible release of 382,262,109 vital healthcare records.
With the growing number of security breaches, there is a consistent need for new cybersecurity protocols that must be put in place in compliance with the U.S. Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) to warrant the data.
2023 will see new software and technologies being implemented by healthcare practitioners to enhance cybersecurity.
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AI-Driven Medical Billing:
AI would prove to be valuable if incorporated into medical billing. It will help the healthcare staff manage insurance claims ensuring they are submitted on time without any errors.
Insurance claims processed by AI can minimize human errors and claim re-submissions that ultimately cause revenue loss. Additionally, AI helps improve patient care and treatment plans by collecting and analyzing data and identifying new trends in the industry.
Through AI, healthcare practitioners can prepare detailed reports on care receivers’ health data and leverage them to make informed decisions about care treatments.
Another aspect of incorporating AI in billing services is that the billers can obtain prior approval and other essential patient details to get timely reimbursement for the rendered services. The AI-driven information exchange will help medical billing services be safer, error-free, and easy to use by the key stakeholders.
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Mitigate the Underpayment issues:
Dealing with underpayments is another major challenge that healthcare providers face on a daily basis. Underpayment is when the provider receives lower reimbursement for the rendered services than the actual amount.
Underpayment is different from denied payment. A payment denial is when a provider refuses to pay for the services received by the patient. Why it’s essential to understand the difference between the two because underpayments have a better chance of appealing and reimbursement than a denied claim.
The best way to avoid denied and underpayment issues are by bringing a third-party billing service on board that efficiently tackles all such issues and prevents revenue loss. Also, partnering with third-party vendors won’t require you to train your billing staff occasionally, decreasing overhead costs and generating more revenue.
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Use AI chatbots or Software to Improve Patient Experience:
A better patient experience is one of the critical areas of a healthcare system that is often overlooked due to one or other reasons. The question of how much a patient has to pay out-of-pocket for a given service always lingers. The answer mostly comes as a shock to the patients, affecting their overall experience at the facility.
Ideally, patients should be informed about how much they are expected to pay out-of-pocket before rendering the treatment. This helps patients to know how much their insurer will cover and what part of the payment they must bear.
Implementing AI chatbots or the latest software would help reach the much-needed information to the patients.
How to Stay up to date with the trends and innovations in medical billing services
As the latest trends and innovations in the healthcare industry continue to grow, a consistent need for education is imperative to keep yourself updated. As a medical billing outsourcing or coding specialist, you must follow these best practices:
- Simplify Billing: Try to prepare error-free and patient-friendly bills to cut down on time for the AR department. And AI would come in handy to streamline the process.
- Allocate trained staff to payer reimbursement: Determining which treatments are covered under a patient’s insurance plan requires efficient revenue management cycle data. Allocating dedicated resources for RCM resolves issues pertaining to patient billing, cash collection, communication with payers, contract analysis, and account management.
- Ensure Claim Accuracy: Claims that contain errors and require re-submissions eat-up valuable time that could be used treating patients. Automating the coding process will eliminate human errors and give you plenty of time to work on important tasks.
Conclusion
The healthcare industry constantly adapts to the latest technology and innovations. Whether you have just started your career or have been in the field for years, it’s essential that you stay up-to-date with the advancements in medical billing and coding services.
Start with these 5 trends that we have taken from the top medical billing companies in Maryland and make your way toward the top.