Heart of Gold: Exploring the Fundamentals of Medical Billing for Cardiologists

To all the cardiologists out there – thank you, from the bottom of our healthy, well-maintained hearts. 

Your dedication to understanding the complexities of the heart, your relentless pursuit of innovative and effective treatments, and your compassionate care for patients are the lifelines of cardiovascular health.

And we genuinely admire that.

Because of you, millions of people around the world are given a chance (or second chance) at living a happy, healthy, and rewarding life. And you do it with grace – out of the goodness of your beautiful heart.  

With that said, let’s address the elephant in the room. 

Medical billing and coding. 

I know – just the sight of those words makes your heart skip a beat. 

Medical Billing: The Heartbeat of Your Cardiology Practice

Medical billing, as most cardiologists know, is the process of submitting and following up on insurance claims, and invoicing patients for services rendered. Without it, cardiologists wouldn’t get paid for the incredible work they do – and, therefore, wouldn’t have the means to continue serving their community.

In a way, you can think of medical billing as the heartbeat of your cardiology practice. 

Unfortunately, like most heartbeats, the medical billing process isn’t perfect – and complications can arise.

Denials. Rejections. Delays. Collections. Coding errors. Typos. Frequent changes in billing codes and insurance regulations. Failing to pre-authorize certain procedures. Cash flow problems. 

And that’s not even considering the amount of time, energy, money, and effort it takes to manage on a day-to-day basis – time, energy, and effort that could be spent with patients, or, better yet, family. 

At Millenium, we believe there’s a better way. 

We’ve been helping healthcare providers (like yourself) maximize reimbursements for a more steady and predictable revenue cycle for more than 15 years – and we would be honored to do the same for you. 

Pump Up Your Practice's Profits With Millenium Medical Billing 

Like most business owners, cardiologists have bills to pay. Rent, payroll, benefits, supplies, cardiology equipment, advertising, software, office technology, and utilities – these expenses add up quickly. 

And if they’re not paid, then operations come to a halt. 

So, what can we do to help? 

• Record, verify, store, and update patient demographic information 
• Verify insurance coverage and benefits of each patient
• Document the services provided and reasons why they were used
• Determine the proper medical codes to use for each patient
• Submit the insurance claim and monitor its progress to ensure reimbursement
• Process reimbursements and record payments
• Manage denials and initiate the appeal process
• Invoice patients, monitor collections, and manage AR department

With Millenium by your side, cash flow won’t be a problem – and you’ll never have to worry about another medical code again. Our award-winning service takes care of everything – that way, you don’t have to.

Here’s how we do it!

1. Patient Information & Financial Responsibility

The medical billing process begins the moment your patient schedules their first appointment. At that point, your receptionist or front desk team will have them fill out a series of paperwork – that way, we can document who that patient is, what insurance they have, and how they prefer to communicate with you. 

It’s our job to verify the accuracy, ensure confidentiality, and regularly update that information. 

Not only that, but we take the time to understand their insurance coverage inside and out – that way, we don’t accidentally bill the company for something they don’t cover. While this helps us limit the amount of denials your practice receives, it also helps limit the out-of-pocket cost your patients are stuck with. 

2. Gathering Codes & Submitting Claims

After you meet with the patient, we can start filling out and submitting insurance claims to get you paid. This process takes time, but we can reduce the amount of time by avoiding errors and careless mistakes. 

That means using the right ICD codes (which represent the diagnosis), CPT codes (which identify the treatment), HCPCS codes (for Medicare and Medicaid), and modifiers (which identify altered services). 

Once submitted, we monitor the claim’s progress. 

This is where a lot of cardiology practices fall short. Submitting the claim is one thing, but a lot of those claims end up getting lost in the chaos. If not monitored, your practice could end up losing that revenue.

There are three possible scenarios after submitting a claim – it either gets accepted, denied, or rejected. An accepted claim is obviously what we’re going for, but problems can arise – and then delays happen.

3. Managing Appeals & Patient Statements

If the claim isn’t accepted, it’ll either be denied or rejected. A denied claim is one that can be submitted again – if the errors were fixed, then the insurance company will accept it. A rejected claim, on the other hand, can’t be submitted again and the remaining amount due will be the responsibility of your patient. 

Something about that doesn’t sit right with us – that’s why we try to avoid it!

No matter what type of insurance they have, chances are your patient will be getting a bill of some sort. Making sure they understand what’s owed and why it’s owed is essential to getting paid in a timely manner. Our main goal here is to reduce the number of patient statements that get sent to collections. 

Millenium Medical Billing: It’s Time Your Cardiology Practice Started Thriving

Do you feel like your cardiology practice is leaving money on the table? Are your insurance claims constantly getting rejected or denied? Do you worry that you might not have the cash flow to support the costs of running your business? Do you spend more time writing medical codes than helping patients? 

If you answered ‘yes’ to any of those questions, then you’ve come to the right place. 

Welcome to Millenium Medical Billing. 

Our state-of-the-art technology and dedicated team of professionals work tirelessly to keep your practice financially healthy, allowing you to focus on what matters most—providing exceptional care to your patients. Contact our office right away to learn more about how we can help your practice thrive.