BE YOUR OWN BOSS

The idea of being your own boss can be very empowering, but as with any new business endeavor, there are things you must consider before striking out on your own. First, it is crucial to understand your options and how a home-based position fits your personal needs and goals. Learning what is involved in starting a medical billing home business is the first step in making the right decision.

Before starting a home-based medical billing business, it is essential to learn about the needs of doctors and medical facilities in your area. By doing your research, you can better gauge your chances for success as an entrepreneur. Questions to ask doctors include:

• Do you handle your own Billing or go through an outside company?
• Are there specific software programs that you use or would recommend?
• What is your daily patient volume?
• If you use an outside billing company, do they only handle submitting insurance claims or deal with other accounting aspects?

Keep in mind; there are many offers available for people starting a home-based medical billing business that sound too good to be true. The Bureau of Consumer Protection offers some valuable advice on how to identify scams. For instance, you might want to contact one of the following groups to find out about any complaints against the company you are researching:

• Your State Attorney General’s office
• The Consumer Protection Agency
• The Better Business Bureau in your area

Additionally, before signing any agreement with a medical billing provider, please consult with an attorney and have him or her review the paperwork.

Billing a patient for medical services can be complicated. Plus, not all patients can afford to pay the entire bill in full. And then there’s the paperwork. Knowing which documents need to go where can be confusing and challenging with laws like the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA). If a hospital or doctor messes things up, it’s a huge legal liability.

This is where medical billing businesses can help. They take care of billing clients on behalf of doctors, hospitals, and other healthcare providers. Medical billing companies simplify the process by coordinating multiple providers and billing systems while incorporating methods to adhere to changing regulations. Hence, healthcare providers stay compliant and pay for their services.

A clear plan is essential for success as an entrepreneur. It will help you map out the specifics of your business and discover some unknowns. A few important topics to consider are:

• What are the startup and ongoing costs?
• Who is your target market?
• How much can you charge customers?
• What will you name your business?

Who is the target market?

The target market is as broad as the healthcare industry. You can narrow your focus, of course, and target specific types of practitioners and providers. For example, this is what most small to medium-sized medical billing companies do.

How does a medical billing business make money?

A medical billing business makes money in several ways:

• Billing by the hour
• Billing by the claim
• Taking a percentage of the funds collected from claims