Reform Health Care Now: Insurance reimbursements make no sense

When I opened my own medical practice more than four years ago, I decided to do my own billing so I could learn how medical billing worked. Instead of hiring an office manager, I handled all disputes with the dozen or so health insurance companies whose plans I accepted as well as Medicare and the state-run Medicaid program.

It was a rude awakening. I was not new to medicine -- I had spent five years in another private practice and another six years working for Kaiser Permanente -- yet I was shocked to learn that getting reimbursed by a health insurance company is often a game of coding and standing up for what's right. And if I wanted to get reimbursed for my work, I needed to learn how the system works -- or I might not stay in business for long.