Dental software offers the modern dental office efficiency and ease of use in day-to-day operations. However many practices find the best reason to convert from a paper-based to a computer-based system is the ability to file dental electronic claims.
Faster Filing
When you file your insurance claims by mail it takes days just to get there where it sits in a stack to be entered by hand by a claims processor. During busy times such as at the end of the year, the backlog of work could delay your claims for weeks.
Sending insurance claims electronically means they are received by the insurance carrier as soon as they are transmitted. They can be processed by the system right away. Simple claims are run through automatically without any delay. Claims that are complex, contain contradictory information or are over a certain dollar amount may have to be checked by a human claims processor, but since they are looking over only a fraction of the work the process flows much more quickly.
Fewer Mistakes
Even if we are careful, it’s easy to make basic mistakes in arithmetic that can hold up the processing of our claims. If the insurance company suspects an error, they may have to call the dental provider for verification. Serious mathematical errors can even lead to incorrect denials and the slow process of appealing the decision. Sending insurance claims electronically means that the software does the math for you, ensuring it is right.
With all dental procedures priced in the software, there is no chance of accidentally over or under billing the insurance. Procedure codes are entered and the correct price is automatically generated. Patient information is also all tied to the patient identification number, so that a simple keying error on a last name won’t hold up the claim processing.
Increase Productivity
Most practices find that sending insurance claims electronically means they can run their business more efficiently without wasting money on unnecessary expenses. Claims are filed quickly which translates to fewer hours required from workers. Even a large dental office can operate with a smaller staff than non-electronic methods allow.
Transmission of claims data to the insurance company is free, saving huge amounts of postage every year. Add to that the cost of paper, envelopes, printer ink and more and soon the savings really begin to add up.
Finally, don’t forget the financial benefit of fast payment. Faster claims processing means faster insurance reimbursement. The sooner a practice gets a check from the insurance company, the less time they have to float expenses waiting for that revenue. Of course “checks” aren’t common with modern filing techniques either. Many insurance companies make electronic payments which get the money in the practice’s pocket that much sooner.
Author is a freelance copywriter. For more information on sending insurance claims electronically, visit http://www.SavchukSoftware.com/.