Cost-Saving Strategies for DME Billing

Understanding why DME Billing Cost is Rising

The COVID-19 pandemic has been a major disruptor in many spheres of our lives. One of its darkest effects has been noticed in a shrinkage of the job market. Many have changed their jobs during the worst days of the pandemic, or have gone into early retirement. This has resulted in an acute shortage of skilled labor. To make matters worse, disruptions in the supply chain and a rising rate of inflation are making things increasingly difficult for many health care practices to sustain normal operations without hurting their profitability.

Speaking of health care services, the DME (Durable Medical Equipment) sector has been among the worst hit. DME billing operations have become more expensive than ever. To add to the problem, many of the old personnel who had been working before the onset of the pandemic, have left or switched job. And new skilled billers are hard to find. Even if one were to find a good DME billing professional, their current remuneration is manifold higher than before.

Measures to Counter The Price Rise

With a view to keep regular billing operations going and keep operational cost under control, a large number of DME practices across the U.S. are choosing to outsource their billing operations to offshore billing agencies. Offshore outsourcing is not a novelty in the health care business, but it has never been more critical than now. Strategic outsourcing not just helps to reduce billing cost (as offshore rates are way lower than regular, inland rates), it also helps ease the burden of completing the entire billing cycle all by the providers themselves. These include having crucial steps like collecting the patient’s details, obtaining prior authorization for a prescribed device, filling out the claim form with the right codes, attaching all the requisite supporting documents and following up with the insurance company over the status of payment – everything taken care of by a dedicated and skilled team of professionals.

Another major advantage that providers enjoy upon engaging a specialized, third-party DME billing expert is an overall improvement in the rate of collections and a general streamlining of the revenue cycle. Denial rates drop sharply, more bills get passed in unit time and the rate of collections increases. And these are the kind of benefits that no DME provider can really afford to ignore.