All of us know that electronic healthcare claims are cheaper and easier to process than paper claims. But did you know that codes are required for electronic filing and that over three million non-physician health practitioners lack codes?
Filling coding gaps can potentially reduce our healthcare costs by giving patients direct access to quality caregivers who charge less than physicians. However, without codes to file claims, most practitioners will continue to work under physicians.
Enter ABC codes and eClaim.biz.
The codes needed to fill U.S. gaps in coding have been under development by ABC Coding Solutions since 1996.
Now the company has developed an innovative way for non-physicians to generate paper and electronic claims within their scope of practice in any state or the District of Columbia.
There are over 4,500 ABC codes to fill gaps in HIPAA code sets. eClaim.biz helps 20 professions determine who can do what - by code and by state.
The company bypassed the need to have national designation as a HIPAA standard by mapping its ABC codes to the closest possible medical codes. Next, it built an online HIPAA-compliant claim filing system. The system helps practitioners document care using ABC codes and then generate claims using the closest medical codes.
As eClaim.biz is used, statistics on cost effective options to conventional medicine emerge. According to Dr. Clayton Christensen – the world’s leading authority on disruptive technologies – ABC codes and eClaim.biz can help fix healthcare by providing an affordable tool for an underserved population (http://medicalnewswire.com/artman/publish/article_9539.shtml).
eClaim.biz draws on over 15 million references to scope of practice. This is especially important for non-physician practitioners because no two states have the same scope of practice for non-physicians. For example, chiropractors are authorized to deliver babies in Oregon while in other states, they are prohibited from using acupuncture needles. By helping non-physicians truthfully describe what they do AND guiding them to bill legally, insurers and practitioners can avoid fines up to $10,000 per claim.
Pricing for eClaim.biz starts at $20 per year and $1.50 per claim. Practices with high claim volume (more than 40 claims a month) can fix their claims filing cost for under $65.00 per month. Time-saving features such as word searches for diagnostic and medical codes are included. There is no software to purchase, no clearinghouse connection fee, no hardware to buy and no hidden charges. All that is needed is a high speed internet connection to generate an unlimited number of claims in a HIPAA-compliant IT environment.
While insurance companies may not jump to pay claims for non-medical care, practitioners are finding that their reimbursement rates are increasing using eClaim.biz. As Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) gain momentum in the market, eClaim.biz users can expect that HSA claims will be paid more quickly as will property and casualty claims, disability claims and auto accident claims.
Below is a list of the practitioner types currently supported by ABC codes and eClaim.biz:
• Acupuncturists
• Chiropractors
• Christian Science Practitioners
• Clinical Nurse Specialists
• Clinical Social Workers
• Direct-Entry Midwives
• Doctors of Osteopathy (holistic)
• Indigenous Medicine Practitioners
• Licensed Practical Nurses
• Licensed Professional Counselors
• Marriage and Family Therapists
• Massage Therapists and Bodyworkers
• Medical Doctors (holistic)
• Naprapaths
• Naturopathic Doctors
• Nurse Midwives
• Nurse Practitioners (all specialties)
• Nutritionists
• Physical and Occupational Therapists
• Physician Assistants
• Practical Nurses
• Psychologists
• Reflexologists
• Registered Dieticians
• Registered Nurses
• Spiritual Care Nurses
• Sports Therapists
eClaim.biz and ABC codes provide the missing link to more effectively use technology to reduce time, costs and liability. The data generated from eClaim.biz and ABC codes will increase the transparency of healthcare costs and delivery.
About ABC Coding Solutions
ABC Coding Solutions (formerly Alternative Link) was founded in 1996 to fill critical gaps in coding for the healthcare industry. The company's ABC codes help more than 3 million healthcare practitioners file claims for healthcare services that are not adequately described in other national code sets. ABC Coding Solutions' new service, eClaim.biz, helps medical and non-medical healthcare practitioners generate paper and electronic claims using a variety of HIPAA code sets for insurance claims processing. The company also provides consulting services for developing insurance plans and payment systems that enable greater public access to quality healthcare.
For more information please visit www.ABCcodes.com or www.eClaimbiz.