Medical Billing Forum
General Category => General Questions => : medauthor September 05, 2010, 03:19:29 PM
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Hello fellow home-based billers,
I am curious to see how others feel and how you handle the following.....How long will you wait for payment from a provider? If you Flat-fee bill, and your invoice is due on the 1st of the month...when will you cease billing until your invoice is paid?
Do you charge a late fee? Do you ever have providers who are late every month with paying you?
Just curious :)
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Well this is how my contracts reads payment is due on the 1st of the month, late fee after the 5th, and if not paid by the 10 they get a CEASE BILLING letter mailed on the 11th !! I don't play with my pay. If I'm doing the job right you are getting paid, why can't I??? Providers know many billing companies are out of the home, and they know we are DESPERATE for business. I keep it professional and like the power company....i shut down the lights when I don't get paid. Some people say you can cut off the hand that feeds you, but that only applies if they feeding you... If you not getting paid, waiting 30 60 90 more days still aint helping.
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Right on Charlene! Michelle, we have had difficulties in the past with not getting paid. Unfortunately we didn't handle it like Charlene. Our contract didn't help us out either as we weren't using a good one. The most important thing Charlene said was it needs to be covered in your contract. We had to rewrite our contract to cover this and many other 'issues'. Most people starting a billing service (I know you (Michelle) are not a newbie) don't have any idea what to cover in their contract. Alice and I finally took the time and did the research to write a book on how to write a contract and what needs to be covered in it. Ironically we are releasing the book today!
Michele
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Michele,
I can't wait to see it! :)
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I've never had to go beyond charging late fee and suspending billing.. It's clear in my contract that payments are due by the 5th, after 5th there is late fee/penalty and 10 days late billing is ceased until payment is received. Again, I've never had it go beyond them paying after receiving my letter that billing was being suspended.
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Linda,
These situations in our past are what made it clear to us that having a good contract is crucial to your success in this business. Wish we had known that when we started, but our experiences gave us the knowledge we needed to be able to write the book to help others understand the importance of their contract and the things they need to consider when writing it.
Michele
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This is exactly the issue I have been dealing with these past three months. All of a sudden, our clients "don't have the money", but I still need to make payroll, pay the bills, etc., etc.
It's now obvious that I need to edit my contract and add a few more bullet points. What is the best way to present the updated contract to our clients? Do I just send an addendum and ask them to sign?
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One more question: Who does their own client invoicing and who hires it out?
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With so many banks integrating with Quick books or offering invoicing with online banking, I'd never outsource that..JMO
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Does your current contract have a time? Like a year? You may have to wait until the term is up to get them to agree to new terms. Otherwise, I would just present it to them stating you have updated your contract and you'd like to go over it with them and resign.
Michele
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We do all of our own client invoicing.
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Ah Quickbooks. I have avoided learning how to use it, but it may be time. One of our billers is also proficient in Quickbooks, maybe I can add bookkeeping to her job description.
Thank you for your input--very helpful.
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You can find free classes on Quickbooks everywhere online, also many accountant firms also give classes as well as office max and staples. I also have the Quickbooks for Dummies book which I think is fantastic... :)
I wonder why there is no "Medical Billing for Dummies" or is there??
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Right on Charlene! Michelle, we have had difficulties in the past with not getting paid. Unfortunately we didn't handle it like Charlene. Our contract didn't help us out either as we weren't using a good one. The most important thing Charlene said was it needs to be covered in your contract. We had to rewrite our contract to cover this and many other 'issues'. Most people starting led lights (http://www.niceledlights.com) service (I know you (Michelle) are not a newbie) don't have any idea what to cover in their contract. Alice and I finally took the time and did the research to write a book on how to write a contract and what needs to be covered in it. Ironically we are releasing the book today!
Michele
Ya charlene you followed best method to solve billing issues.. I will try to cover all pit holes and make new contract
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Debt collectors seem to call at the most inconvenient times, don't they? Actually, anytime someone calls asking for money is an inconvenience. There's nothing pleasant about being pressed to pay a bill, especially when you can't afford it or you're just not ready to pay.
The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) sets guidelines for when debt collectors can call
-->They can call between 8am and 9pm, your local time
-->They can call you at work if they do not know your employer disapproves
-->They can call you once more after receiving a cease and desist letter from you