What advices or suggestions can you provide when a medical biller/coder encounters an irate client, a client does not want to pay you for your services, and/or the client wants you to engage into billing fraud?
My two cents:
1. Irate client: In my experience, clients are usually irate about two things...lack of receivables, and what they are charged for our services.
When it comes to lack of receivables, I find that this happens right around February/March every year. Which is when I have to once AGAIN explain to the clients that we are meeting Medicare/commercial insurance deductibles, and there is nothing we can do to change that. And I have to explain it every single year to the same clients. They are happy all year, except during those months.
When it comes to what we charge them, they often hear from another provider they know that that provider is being charged a lesser rate by their billing company, and why don't they have the same rate? And I have to explain what all it is that our company does, and does their friend's billing company do the same work? And it never is the same. Not by a long shot.
Here is something providers will NEVER understand about having a billing company versus an in-house biller:
Regardless of what the billing company charges, be it a percentage or a flat rate, they will always pay less to have a billing company versus an in-house biller, unless they are dealing with a billing company that has outrageous fees. The providers don't take into account so many factors when the biller is in-house versus having a billing company. Like payroll taxes, for example. The list goes on, and on.
2. A client does not want to pay for your services: This comes down to the contract you have with the client. What Michele said is spot on.
3. Client wants you to engage in billing fraud: There are two types of billing fraud. The type where the client doesn't understand what they are doing is fraud, "they are ignorant", and the type where they do understand, and just won't listen to why it is fraud. For the second type, drop them immediately as a client. For the first type, attempt to educate them. If they won't listen, drop them as a client.