EDI claims provide speed. Electronic claims are generally processed within 14 to 21 days, where paper claims can take up to 2 months to be processed. There are no post office delays using EDI.
EDI claims are more secure. EDI claims leave no paper trail. they will not get "lost" in the mail or fall into the wrong hands. EDI claims allow electronic tracking. You will be able to see when the claim was submitted, processed, and paid electronically. When sending a paper claim, you do not have any tracking information.
EDI claims improve accuracy. Electronic transfer of data eliminates the need for copying data from one paper document to another, or for keying the data into a business application screen. Every time data is transferred, there is opportunity for error to be introduced to the process. Electronic claims are created from a database or verified data, and therefore will be correct every time.
EDI claims are more accurate. Electronic first-time rejections account for approximately 2% of all submitted claims, where paper claims can account up to 35% of submitted claims. Paper claims are more often rejected due to poor ink quality, misalignment on CMS-1500 forms, etc. EDI claims are sent in an electronic format and therefore, do not have any of these errors.
All in all, electronic claim filing is best for all practices, regardless of specialty or size. It helps to reduce the rising paper and postage costs. It also reduces claim turnaround and gets you paid in approximately one-third the time.
Electronic claim filing is just one of the many benefits of having Management Consultatns as your billing service specialists. We offer electronic claim filing free of charge, unlike most billing services that charge on a per-claim basis.