Medical Billing and Practice Management Software

Physicians across the country are enjoying a well-established medical billing program.

IMS is an innovative Patient Accounting and Practice Management System designed to help Medical practices improve quality of care, reduce risk, cut costs, and increase revenues. Appropriate for any sized medical practice—from a small, solo practice to a large, multi-provider/multi-location group—this feature-rich system allows you to create and maintain patient billing information faster and more efficiently than ever before.

Using our simplified podiatry billing software, physicians can enter patient information and post charges faster and more accurately, promoting podiatrists’ acceptance and more excellent investment protection with faster insurance reimbursement and improved collections. IMS’s Windows-based system, coupled with its well-designed patient information screens, makes learning the system easy.

Call (480) 782-1116 or click to request a free demo or trial version of our Medical Billing, EMR, and Practice Management Software

Furthermore, IMS for Windows® is specifically engineered to work seamlessly with other popular Windows-based programs, such as WORD®, Excel®, Patient Appointment Schedulers, EMR Programs, Documentation programs, and automated patient reminder systems. Our open architecture design allows just about any popular software package to “connect” to IMS’s databases. The open architecture design provides major advantages to you. You can pick the “Best of Breed” in any software, and these systems will integrate with IMS.

Electronic Claims and Payments – HIPAA Compliant!

Electronic filing is fast and efficient. In short, electronic filing is good business. By utilizing our electronic claims module, (included with the main IMS program at no additional charge), you can trim claims collections from an average of 3-4 weeks to 4-5 days! Our add-on AutoPay® program can drastically reduce its time to post insurance payments because it posts electronically.

The Development Team works diligently to ensure that IMS users remain in compliance with Medicare requirements for electronic claims submission at all times. We were one of the first vendors to offer the ANSI 837 electronic claims format nearly a decade ago, which ultimately evolved into the new HIPAA-mandated ANSI X12 standard. IMS has received approval for successful X12 file submission in all states. It ensures that the healthcare professionals who rely on IMS each day are in total compliance with the ANSI X12 standard.

Now, your practice can submit claims:

Directly to Medicare using the new Medicare ANSI X12 Standard 837 format, at no charge per claim-FREE.
Direct to Blue Cross/Blue Shield organizations, at no charge per claim-FREE.
Direct to all insurance carriers accepting the ANSI X12 837 format-FREE.
Or you can send claims through our FREE clearinghouse!

Office Staff Training

At 1st Providers Choice, we know the value of well-trained staff. We know that training is the key that unlocks the potential in IMS. That’s why training is included with the purchase of IMS. In addition, seminars are held in strategic locations nationwide. An outstanding IMS CD Tutorial created by two of our top trainers is also available. You can use this CD to train your staff and can be used over and over again. It is rich in content and has built-in reviews and tests to ensure that you get the most out of the training.

Staff training is one of the more crucial aspects of installing a practice-management system. It is also one that is too often overlooked or shortchanged. Initial training for the people – staff and practitioners – who will have to operate the system daily, is important and you will receive a specific amount of basic training with your license. We require it! We want to make sure you are comfortable with the system on your equipment in your practice. Training included with the software is done over the internet and scheduled to be at your convenience in sessions that you feel are manageable.

However, to maximize your return on your investment in practice-management software, we strongly recommend that you consider advanced onsite training for key staff members and then periodic skill-review sessions, which are especially handy when there has been a turnover in staff. Your representative will be happy to discuss a training program that fits your needs.

Billing Software Installation

At 1st Providers Choice, we’re pretty picky about our software – and that makes us somewhat different from many software companies you may have come across in the past. Some companies will sell you their software and then wish you well. We don’t work that way. Consequently, it matters a great deal to us that your software is installed properly and that your staff and management – those operating the IMS Practice-Management System – are prepared to get the most from the system.

Whether you purchase computers from 1st Providers Choice or another vendor or choose to use your existing equipment, 1st Providers Choice provides a pre-installation checklist that will help your computer technician properly configure your computer equipment before your software is installed. This same checklist becomes our basis for understanding your system. The information included on the completed checklist provides Technical Support Staff with the basic information necessary to provide prompt, informed help if your staff call for support.

Technical Support

When you purchase a license for IMS software, you receive six months of unlimited technical support by telephone. Technical support is the backstop that ensures that your practice doesn’t suffer should your staff encounter a problem beyond their level of expertise.

Our technicians are highly trained computer experts with hands-on experience valuable when something goes awry. They know our software inside and out and know the demands of your practice, so they’re well prepared to get you back on track quickly and with as little stress as possible. At 1st Providers Choice, you always receive prompt, skilled, and courteous technical support.

Billing Software Upgrades

When you purchase IMS software, you also receive all upgrades issued during the ensuing six months at no additional charge.

What are upgrades, and why are they necessary?

In essence, upgrades are your insurance that your IMS software will never be outdated. If computer technology and the art of practice management never changed, there would be little need for upgrades. However, these worlds are in almost constant flux and, to remain effective, the tools you use to manage your practice must evolve as well. New claim forms and changes in electronic claims submission requirements are just two ways practice management can change. Rest assured that at 1st Providers Choice, we are monitoring this regulatory environment to prepare for these changes.

Some upgrades help your software work effectively with new computer hardware, operating systems, or peripherals. Others help your software adapt to new developments in practice management. And still, others incorporate features or improvements suggested by long-time users of the program.

Each upgrade you receive is a demonstration of our ongoing commitment to making IMS the most advanced and versatile practice-management software in the world.

Billing System Features – Overview

IMS for Windows provides you with the look and feel that’s synonymous with Windows® applications. In IMS, you’ll find the polished graphic interface, pull-down menus, Hotkeys, shortcuts, button bars, and extensive online Help System that you’ve come to expect from the very best Windows applications. You’ll find that you can navigate from one screen to the next using the mouse or the keyboard, whichever is more comfortable for you. In addition, you’ll discover that we’ve designed IMS to interface flawlessly not only with your favorite word processing and spreadsheet programs but with the most popular scheduling and medical notes programs as well.

Behind the scenes.

IMS takes full advantage of the most powerful aspects of the Windows® architecture – things like OLE and DDE compliance and powerful GUI technology. What this means to you is that:

IMS operates faster than ever before and provides an even broader range of data storage and retrieval options.
Many of your staff will be familiar with the look, feel, and many of the commands, even before they start working with IMS!
You can use image scanning or voice recognition software and then store the results – sound and graphic data such as voice notes, patient signatures, and x-rays – right in the patient’s record.
Your patient care, practice productivity, and bottom line will benefit.

Tried and true.
Just in case you’re wondering, IMS for Windows® has been in the market almost as long as Windows® itself – over a decade old now and growing strong! You’re probably aware by this time that Windows-based programs typically require 18 months before they’re up and running smoothly. IMS finished its development phase before it left our headquarters and has an unparalleled record of smooth sailing. With IMS, your practice isn’t at risk of suffering setbacks due to software growing pains. We’ve already got the years of experience in the Windows® environment that even many of our larger competitors lack.

You’re always in charge. At 1st Providers Choice, we like software that lets us do things our way. We presume you feel the same way. That’s why IMS is designed to let you tailor so many facets of the program to meet the specific needs of your practice today – and change them tomorrow when your needs change again. It’s your data — why not store and retrieve it in a fashion that suits you rather than the software developer? User-defined information fields, an entire patient sub-file that you design, virtually limitless note-file capability, more report formats than you can imagine, and some of the most sophisticated and comprehensive querying tools in the industry will ensure that you always get the right information at the right time in the right format.

Software for the life of your practice.
Beneath the technical wizardry of its graphic interface, online help system, and wide-ranging connectivity, IMS for Windows® is, at its heart, an unparalleled data-crunching workhorse – one that can start with your practice today and then keep pace with your growth. The reasons you’ll want IMS on your side as you grow are myriad. For a sampling, click through the next couple of pages.

Billing System Features – Windows Platform Features

Attractive, easy-to-use Graphic Environment.
Familiar Windows®-style Menus, Hotkeys, Shortcuts, Toolbars, Speed Tips, and Online Help systems.
Use the mouse or the keyboard – you decide.
OLE and DDE compliant. Compatible with your favorite Windows®-based programs!
Cut and paste between IMS and any compatible third-party software – word processor, spreadsheet, scheduling software.
Create patient notes in IMS, then format and print them using WORD® or other word processing software.
Merge your IMS data into personalized letters in WORD®, into Excel® spreadsheets, or your favorite Financial Graphing program.
Store all pertinent patient data – including signatures, voice notes, x-rays, or video clips created with other software – right in the patient file.
Four levels of password security help protect your valuable data.
Comprehensive Patient Records in a format so unique it’s copyrighted.
An Innovative MY file that lets you decide which information to store and how to store it.
Intuitive charges and payments entry. Unlimited patient note files. Searching is a snap with Query by Example – type a few letters or numbers to get the information you need.
If you’re stuck, press F1 when a field is highlighted to get immediate help on that topic.
IMS Speed Tips provide quick on-screen reminders – let the mouse linger over a button or topic, and a small label appears, letting you know what function the item performs.
Information or advice at a click of the mouse in our unparalleled Online Help System.
Over 100 predefined and custom reports.
Easy to generate end-of-the-day, month, and year reports.
Use the Query Function to limit the records you review – and store the queries you use often.
Use our Lister Function to create specific columnar reports that contain just the information you need.
Print to most Windows® printers (we recommend the Hewlett Packard business series), including any installed fax
Preview reports to your screen before printing.
Create your Crystal® custom labels and reports.
Store multiple NPI numbers for both personal and facility NPI.
File HIPAA-compliant claims electronically – reduce turn-around time to a fraction of the time it now takes.

The Benefits of Medical Billing Software

Reduce paperwork and errors
As most healthcare providers opt for a more streamlined way to handle billing and insurance claims these days, paperwork is beginning to disappear from the medical field. Cutting down on paperwork and other physical forms can significantly reduce the possibility of errors and also eliminate the need for bulky storage of documents. Utilizing medical billing software makes it possible to eliminate all paperwork in your practice practically.
Provide better patient care

Your healthcare facility’s ability to provide a positive experience for patients is getting more and more important. Today’s medical practitioners realize that it’s equally important to provide a good patient experience for retail stores to provide good customer service. One way to improve your patients’ experience is to provide them with electronic payment options or patient portals that provide important information about their benefits and billing.
Support
Support often goes unnoticed by healthcare practitioners since it’s not included in their software. Investing in a solution that lacks robust support can lead to lost time and wages that are more costly than if you had invested upfront.

The provider you choose should offer excellent support. Support should be available via telephone, web conferencing, and email. Furthermore, they should provide training documentation in the form of manuals and other materials. With 1st Providers Choice, you will receive six months of unlimited technical support by telephone. Our customer support protects your practice if your staff encounter a problem that’s beyond their expertise. The support team knows our software inside out and your practice’s needs, so they can help you get back on track as quickly and smoothly as possible.
Automation

Past due bill reminders no longer need to be sent manually. You can be paid faster with automated payment reminders, automated insurance verification, electronic claims submission, and an easier payment process. It is possible to save your administrator’s time by avoiding a more manageable to call insurance providers and browse through menu options to verify a patient’s insurance. Reducing the time spent filing and organizing patient billing records, practices a patient’s insurance their operations.
Enhance claim tracking
Tracking and processing medical claims are made significantly easier by medical billing software. You can check the coverage of patients with most software packages, and you will be alerted if claims are denied. It will also help you resubmit a claim and keep you informed of the time frames involved. Also, you’ll be alerted to any coding errors or inconsistencies that might exist in a patient’s file, which might cause an insurance company to reject their claim.
Improved financial reporting
Medical billing software will give you a powerful reporting system as well as a full suite of management tools. As a result, you will be able to effectively manage your patients’ records and track the health status of your practice. Reports from your medical billing software can help you determine the areas of profitability for your practice, as well as those areas that may not be so profitable.

Practice Management Features

IMS is appropriate for each level of your growth: single-provider office, multi-provider clinic, or multiple clinic settings – up to ninety-nine office or clinic locations.
Analytical reports provide statistics for your overall practice, individual providers, or specific patient categories.
Monitor the financial growth of your practice with the daily, month-to-date, monthly, prior period, and annual reports.
Export financial data to spreadsheet programs such as Microsoft® Excel® for analysis or for graphing for presentations.

Patient Information

IMS records all routine patient information, such as name, address, employment status, date of birth, diagnoses, and insurance carrier. But it’s designed to accommodate much, much more — nicknames, the patient’s reason for selecting your practice; the number of days until the patient should return, dates of injury and partial or complete disability, three secondary carriers, a guarantor’s name, address and telephone, and whether to address statements to the patient or the guarantor or third party.
For your convenience, you can enter support-file information, such as diagnosis codes, referring physicians, carriers, or facilities codes, on the fly as you enter patient data.
Sophisticated indexing techniques let you quickly access any patient record – regardless of the number of patients on file. Also, you can create and store your indexes to control the sequence of patients displayed in reports.
Enter three short pieces of information to register a new patient. Fill out the balance of the form any time before billing.
A separate file system tracks “open problems” for all patients and places a note on each file. Perfect for maintaining a log of open issues or simply for tracking lab work or collection problems.
Use multiple fee schedules and assign a patient to a specific schedule. The system will automatically select the correct fee schedule when charges are entered. IMS keeps track of patient visits. You can easily track patients who have been in “x” or more times or change settings such as the patient’s fee schedule or insurance co-pay percentage when appropriate. Supply a visit limit for any patient, and the system will tell you when the limit has been reached.
Record up to 8 diagnosis codes electronically and four modifiers for each patient.
Enter diagnostic codes by typing them or by clicking the selection from a pop-up list. Browse for the diagnosis code you want or jump to it by typing a short part of the code or its description.
Produce an on-demand report for any patient, showing a chronology of that patient’s diagnosis history or the diagnoses as they changed during a specific period.
View any patient’s current financial balances at a keystroke.
Quickly find one or all patients who share a specific combination of characteristics.
Produce personalized letters and reports to a patient or for multiple patients at a time.
Screen your patient records for missing information needed to produce valid insurance claims.

Charges and Payments Features

Perform virtually all normal tasks associated with the flow of patients in and out of your office from one screen.
Call up a patient record by typing a portion of the name or the account number.
As you enter charges, IMS will notify you if the patient record is missing data needed for a valid insurance claim.
Monitor capitation fees and multiple fee schedules for managed care and reduced-fee programs.
Tell IMS to display a reminder of the patient’s health care plan requires some special handling.
For your convenience, IMS’s accumulator keeps a running total when entering a single insurance check against multiple claims.
IMS’s Flexible charges entry lets you enter charges by Standard CPT codes, speed codes, or catalogs that you design to represent a series of frequently used CPTs.
Charges you enter are saved until you decide to delete them – even zero-charge transactions if you choose.
Track unpaid claims by line item or by claim – your choice.
In handling any unpaid balance on an insurance claim, you may:
- re-bill the carrier,
- bill a secondary carrier,
- transfer the balance to the patient,
- write it off.
When entering payments on a claim, you have all the information you need right in front of you, including all line item details, the amount you expected, all previous payments, payments by secondary carriers, and more.

Insurance Billing and Patient Statements

IMS automatically prepares the standard CMS 1500 claim form while maintaining control over every section that permits optional entries.
You have near-total flexibility in preparing boxes 19 and 24 of the CMS form—the sections most affected by unique state and carrier requirements.
Print individual claims or batches of claims according to criteria you supply – for example, Medicare claims or claims for a particular carrier.
IMS provides several separate routines to verify that all information needed for a valid claim is present.
IMS will never “accidentally” print a claim twice, but you can tell it to reprint individual claims as often as necessary.
IMS also lets you “rebatch” claims should you run into a problem or make a mistake during the initial run. Fix the problem or correct the error, then rebatch the claims and rerun them. IMS also gives you the option to rebatch secondary claims.
An available Claims Register logs and tracks primary claims, secondary claims, and tracers, and maybe run for the current or prior months.
Print secondary claims right from the payment screen after receiving payment from the primary carrier.
Insurance tracers are available on demand.
IMS provides multiple statement formats, each with a wide variety of customizing options.
Generate a text file to send statements electronically to Emdeon. For a fee, Emdeon/Express Bill will print the statements to paper and mail them to your patients, leaving your staff more time for other tasks.

Electronic Claims Features

Submit directly to Medicare, Blue Cross/Blue Shield, and most commercial insurance carriers at no charge per claim.
Submit to a clearinghouse of your choice.
Process selected claims on paper and file the rest electronically or send all claims to a clearinghouse and let them determine appropriate filing methods.
Choose any or all of these filing techniques!
Download and post insurance payments quickly and accurately with AutoPay.

Advanced Reporting Module

This potent group of analytical tools is a must-have add-on module for any practice with a growing number of patients. From the analysis of payments and patient visits categorized by the carrier, procedure code, or other parameters to reports of patients due or past due for a certain procedure, this package will help you thoroughly evaluate the operations of your practice. Note: Some of these reports require the entry of payments by the line item method.

Computer System Requirements

A Word about Hardware

Although designing a comprehensive system – hardware and software – is often the most cost-effective approach to upgrading your practice management, it is not a prerequisite to accessing the power of IMS practice-management software. If the ease and convenience of a “turnkey” computer/software system appeal to you, talk to your current representative. They can often recommend a system that best meets all of your needs.

However, whether you upgrade with equipment purchased through your current vendor, an independent vendor, or stick with your existing equipment, be sure your technical consultant reviews the system requirements below to ensure that your system takes full advantage of your IMS software power and versatility.

Software

Software engineers design programs with certain assumptions about the type of computers that will run the software – the type of microprocessor, the amount of memory, and the hard disk size, to name the most common. Good developers create efficient programs capable of running on a range of systems without causing problems.

Our developers take pride in creating versatile, efficient software. However, even the best software needs certain hardware resources just to run, not necessarily well, but just to run at all. This basic configuration is what software producers mean when they use the term “basic requirements.”

At 1st Providers Choice, we know that our customers expect a higher level of performance than that delivered by “basic requirement” systems. That’s why we also provide a “recommended configuration” that describes a system that will allow your IMS software to operate at its best.

Medical Billing, EMR and Practice Management Software