Future of Medical Billing Services
Today, healthcare industry consists of complicated and rigid coding rules and loads of administrative burden. This is making providers turn more than ever to medical billing companies for assistance.
But what is the future of the billing industry? Will it become bigger?
As per reports, by 2026, the U.S. medical billing outsourcing market will reach USD 7.8 billion.
Since there is a growing burden on revenue and profits, Medicare payments are declining, billing volumes are increasing, it is becoming necessary for providers to bring down their in-house processing costs. This is leading them to outsource their medical billing activities.
According to the industry experts, challenges associated with in-house billing such as setbacks to the IT structure, billing errors, untrained staff, and lack of financial policy and so on are the reasons why more practices will choose to outsource. Today, the medical billing industry is a multinational industry due to the rise in medical needs and spending.
Outsourcing of medical billing is set to grow between 8-9% in the next decade and technology is going to play a huge role in it.
Market growth will go higher in the coming years as more doctors and hospital will become unable to afford the expenses that go into running an in-house billing team. Medical facilities are also lacking dedicated IT infrastructure and trained staff needed to afford billing operations on a large scale. This is pushing the need to outsource.
Rise in healthcare spending in the developing countries is another reason why outsourcing of medical billing will increase in the coming years. Inability of many facilities to support their own billing infrastructure is also a reason for this growth. This growth will be strongest in small to mid-sized healthcare providers who don’t have large facilities for handing their workload.
Outsourcing of medical billing services will have a good impact on healthcare providers. They will get to boost their cash flow by optimizing collections- which is a critical task for any cash-strapped hospital or practice. It will also help them get a better grip on their finances and grow their business.
Growth in patient volumes is having a negative effect on the revenue of private practices and hospitals. They are losing significant revenue due to dramatic changes in patient numbers and regulations. To get over this issue, many will start outsourcing their billing needs.