Author Topic: Start Ups  (Read 3138 times)

ceciliavasquez

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Start Ups
« on: January 03, 2014, 11:29:49 PM »
Hi,

I am a new member and I am so happy to find this website.  I am struggling in making a decision to either purchase a business package from ClaimTek or American Billing Systems for $25,000 or just start the business by obtaining books, software, and training individually and save a lot of money.  I am new to the medical billing industry and the two vendors mentioned offer training to start a medical billing service.  Any thoughts and advice that will help me decide?

Thanks,

Cecilia

PMRNC

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Re: Start Ups
« Reply #1 on: January 06, 2014, 04:58:20 PM »
What kind of background do you have?
I never recommend someone spending 25K on a business they have never operated before. This is a business where too many regulations exist and no margin for error. Spend the money slowly and get educated first. You do NOT need to buy a business opportunity.. there's no such thing as turn key medical billing company.
Linda Walker
Practice Managers Resource & Networking Community
One Stop Resources, Education and Networking for Medical Billers
www.billerswebsite.com

Merry

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Re: Start Ups
« Reply #2 on: January 07, 2014, 12:31:08 AM »
I agree with Linda...These companies will give you a few days training with the emphasis in marketing (some billing). You cannot market a service that you have no solid training in.
Think of it this way. You will be responsible for the financial health of the practices that you sign up with. You need to feel comfortable enough with your knowledge to be able to sell yourself. This is a service business. You are selling YOU!!

Take a look at medicalbillingstudycourse.com. Written by the mother and daughter team that run this discussion board. Written for billers by billers. And it is only $999 for the entire course. It is online and gets updated constantly. Support is daytime, evenings, and weekends. Software is less than $500.
I am going to give you the link to the Table of Contents so that you can see what you would be getting. http://medicalbillingstudycourse.com/upload/4687/documents/TOC_11_19_2013.pdf

There is no way..no matter what company you go with, that you can get trained in just a few days. I recommend taking 2-3 months to complete the course..asking questions and getting help as you go.

Merry

Anand

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Re: Start Ups
« Reply #3 on: January 07, 2014, 07:49:25 AM »
What I can suggest you is to hire a good Consultant to help you understand this business and systems. I think Linda & Merry pointed out the facts clearly so investing money is important during a business set-up but why, how & where to invest is a question that needs to be answered.

tallmanusa

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Re: Start Ups
« Reply #4 on: January 07, 2014, 11:56:06 AM »
I have given this example before.
At the turn of the last century, there was a gold rush to the west.
Few people found gold, but those who made money were the ones who sold them pick and shovels.
Let me get this straight, so you have 25K that you want to plunk down to open a billing business.
Have you done any research? A fool and his money are parted very soon.
Most small billing companies are getting out of business, they can't make it. Post an ad on Linkedin to want to buy a going billing company, you will  get dozens of responses, you can pick them up for almost nothing. I did put an ad.
Why?
Over the past year big time companies like Kareo and Advanced MD, to name just a few have entered billing business. They are charging 3 to 4% and giving out free yes free EHR and PM systems. So you think you can compete with them?

May be it is possible, you can dazzle a doctor with your charm, we don't think we can.
What you need are marketing skills, may be you already have them, where many fail, you can succeed.
You have a business only when you have clients, and getting clients is not an easy task.
Look before you leap.
By the way I am no novice, I know the market, we sign up an average of one new client every day.

Medical Billing Forum

Re: Start Ups
« Reply #4 on: January 07, 2014, 11:56:06 AM »

shanbull

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Re: Start Ups
« Reply #5 on: January 07, 2014, 04:21:27 PM »
I agree with everyone else, there is no way that $25k package could be worth the money if you ask me. I'm sure there are tons of perks involved but considering how rapidly policy changes come out and how quickly this industry is evolving, you will need to figure out how to learn on your own anyway. You may as well skip the hefty price tag and dig in to gathering as many educational resources as you can find, and sign up for courses individually that you actually see helping you without all the extras you may or may not actually end up needing. It does involve a bit more work upfront to find said courses (aside from the one already mentioned), but it's also going to cost you a lot less, and allow you to back out if you decide it's not for you without having spent all that money. Or you can spend the money saved on other things to help grow your business on your terms as the need arises.

In order to succeed as a small company in this industry, you need to figure out a niche where you can deliver better, faster, more personalized services than the huge companies. No one can teach you where that niche might be, you have to figure it out based on your personal background and the demands and needs where you're located. You'll need to do on-the-ground research to identify it. If it were obvious, someone would have already set up a business catering to it. So while the general nuts and bolts are important, they are not the only thing you need to figure out to set yourself up for success. This is the "X" factor that most people end up not taking into serious consideration, so they end up failing even when they do have the education part taken care of because they didn't have a sufficient competitive edge to begin with. See this thread for more discussion on the importance of finding your niche http://www.medicalbillinglive.com/members/index.php?topic=7591.msg23977#msg23977
« Last Edit: January 07, 2014, 04:28:16 PM by shanbull »

ceciliavasquez

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Re: Start Ups
« Reply #6 on: January 07, 2014, 07:53:56 PM »
Thanks everyone for all the information, advice, and recommendations.  I greatly appreciate them!

I decided to take courses in medical billing as well as in coding.  It may take me six months or more to get the basics and ongoing education, but I believe it is worth it and I can save some of the $25,000 for other business expenses such as additional training, certifications, equipment, software, and marketing.

Cecilia

Medical Billing Forum

Re: Start Ups
« Reply #6 on: January 07, 2014, 07:53:56 PM »