An Introduction to electronic billing

Published: Friday, 01 March 2013 01:00

Is your medical billing and payment collection for private patients taking up too much of your valuable time, as well as costing you a small fortune in postage and telephone calls? If so, the chances are that you are generating paper invoices using generic software and using a manual system to keep track of them.

As more and more independent practitioners have discovered, electronic billing is the fastest, easiest and most cost-effective way to raise medical invoices. It also has a big impact on your cash flow because medical e-bills are submitted to the correct department ready for processing and payment and are less likely to be queried or returned. In short, you get paid faster!

In recent years, e-billing has become standard practice in the private health sector: it is already used by the UK’s private hospitals and private medical insurers prefer to receive invoices electronically.

Healthcode is the UK’s official clearing house for e-bills. Established for more than 18 years, we now process around £3bn worth of medical invoices annually for hospitals, clinics, consultants and billing specialists.

Healthcode’s e-billing software has been purposely developed so you can create an electronic invoice which meets the industry billing standards and submit it to the insurer online.

It’s easy: There’s a time-saving diagnosis and procedure code search tool. Medical invoices are validated according to the insurers' rules before they are sent to ensure they contain the correct information. You also receive confirmation that your invoice has been submitted successfully. The system also allows you to create paper bills for self-paying patients.

It’s secure: Electronic invoices are sent via an online system which is encrypted to online banking standards so the confidentiality of your patient’s data is protected.

And it’s convenient: You can access the e-billing service from any computer with an internet connection and there is an app version for tablets – a major benefit if you are regularly on the move between hospitals and clinics.

Read our next blog to find out how to get started.