How iCareBilling Is Addressing the Healthcare Industry’s Financial Challenges

While most people only think of the doctors, nurses, and other frontline staff when it comes to the healthcare industry, there is a much larger ecosystem keeping everything afloat. Among the many essential workers are those in the back office, ensuring the financial aspect of patient care runs smoothly.

However, there are many challenges that bottleneck hospitals and private practitioners, including integration hiccups, inefficient systems, insurance issues, and more. That is precisely why companies have been working to address these pain points for years, including iCareBilling, a medical billing company recognized as a leading back-office outsourcing option.

Founded in 2020 and headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, iCareBilling offers solutions in the realms of insurance credentialing, medical billing, practice management, and revenue cycle management, focusing on streamlining operations. The following article dives into the services offered by the company and the pain points they address.

Medical Billing: Integration and Accuracy

While great strides have been made when it comes to electronic health records (EHR) and electronic medical records (EMR), there are still a lot of integration and cross-system issues.

Despite everything being digital, it is rarely as simple as a single button click, especially when different software is at play. This lack of standardization and issues caused by proprietary technology result in decreased accuracy in patient data and financial transactions.

iCareBilling approaches the problem with its EHR-enabled medical billing solutions. This ensures better integration with existing EHR and EMR systems and includes automated data capturing and coding for more accurate and efficient billing. Moreover, iCareBilling is equipped to deal with any system integration, even for those that do not allow third parties to connect.

Practice Management: Stability and Growth

Anyone who has been to a doctor’s office knows that time is always in short supply. Doctors do not know how long a patient visit will last until they step into a room, so things can quickly get backed up. That, combined with day-to-day operations, can overload the administrative side of a practice, leading to inefficiency and reduced revenue.

But how much reduced revenue do practices face? According to AMA (American Medical Association) findings, healthcare practices commercial insurance claims face a 20% error rate that causes $17 billion dollars in lost revenue each year, as of 2011.

While one solution is to increase the size of the staff, there are always constraints, such as office size and budget. Another solution is reducing the strain on administrative employees with practice management services, something iCareBilling provides.

These services entail comprehensive support for back office staff. In particular, workflow and productivity are the focal points, promoting stability and growth by streamlining operations. This is especially important, with many healthcare professionals (40%) reporting that they rarely take lunch breaks and 20% reporting that they do not take lunch breaks at all.

RCM: Maximizing Revenue and Streamlining Operations

As mentioned, streamlining operations is a major selling point when it comes to medical billing services. That is especially true when revenue is involved. Medical practices must deal with both individuals and insurance companies. This often results in difficulties when it comes to optimizing the revenue cycle, whether it is processing claims or ensuring timely payments.

iCareBilling streamlines medical billing operations by handling everything from claim submission to payment optimization. The solution involves reducing the high rate of claim rejections due to billing and coding errors by using “denial management experts.” The experts specialize in reducing healthcare claim rejections by addressing common billing and coding mistakes, achieving a first-time pass-through rate of 98%.

Practice Analytics: Insightful Decision Making

When it comes to finances, data is necessary to truly understand what is going on and grow a business. Data-driven decisions are vital, especially in the healthcare sector, often being the difference between success and failure.

iCareBilling provides healthcare practice analytics to improve key performance indicators. The analytics offer valuable insights, enabling healthcare providers to make smarter business decisions and see where they might need to make changes.

Robust, Albeit Static Solution

iCareBilling is a support system for healthcare providers navigating the complex world of medical finance and operations. By providing solutions in medical billing, practice management, revenue cycle management, and more, it works to address core challenges faced by providers.

However, while it does improve accuracy, efficiency, and financial stability, it suffers from a lack of customization for those who really need it. Still, for any small or medium practice or hospital, the solutions will help with keeping things running smoothly.