No More Billing Centre Fees: Allied Health Practices That Bill Insurers Directly
Every prescription processed by an external billing centre costs your practice money – month after month, appointment after appointment. With integrated direct billing under §302 SGB V, you submit therapy prescriptions straight to statutory health insurers and keep your full revenue. The software guides you through every step – no external service account, no hidden transaction fees.
What Billing Centres Actually Cost You
Percentage-based fees on every prescription add up to a significant sum each month – regardless of what the accompanying software offers. Add in monthly base fees, submission charges, and long contract terms, and the total is often only visible when you study your annual statement carefully. The quiet drain on practice revenue is larger than most practitioners expect.
- ✓Percentage deductions on every prescription line reduce your effective hourly rate
- ✓Fixed monthly fees continue during holiday periods with reduced patient volumes
- ✓Long notice periods keep you locked in even after you have decided to leave
§302 SGB V: Direct Billing Is Open to All Allied Health Providers
German social security law allows allied health providers to bill statutory health insurers directly under §302 SGB V – with no intermediary. The built-in billing function handles validation, bundling, and electronic submission in the legally required data format. Rejection messages from insurers are fed back in structured form so corrections can be made quickly.
- ✓Full data record structure to §302 specifications (TA7/TA6)
- ✓Automatic plausibility checks before each submission
- ✓Insurer responses and error codes tracked directly in the dashboard
Everything in One System – No Duplicate Work
Patient records, appointment book, therapy prescriptions, and billing are connected in a single interface. What you document during treatment is already in the correct form when you come to submit. There are no export files to upload manually and no double data entry between your practice management system and a separate billing portal.
- ✓Review prescription, document treatment, and submit billing in one workflow
- ✓Therapy-guideline traffic-light indicator shows at a glance whether a prescription is ready to bill
- ✓GoBD-compliant accounts and open items in the same application
A Quick Start – Without a Long Migration Period
Switching to direct billing sounds like a lot of work, but it can be prepared in a structured way. The software walks you through the necessary steps: verifying your insurer approval, entering your institution identifier, and running a test submission. New staff members get up to speed quickly because every billing step is guided and explained in plain language.
- ✓Step-by-step setup wizard for initial insurer registration
- ✓Test mode for safe submissions before your first live run
- ✓Personal onboarding support included
Transparent Pricing, Short Terms – No Hidden Fee Creep
The monthly cost for the full practice management system is fixed and transparent, regardless of how many prescriptions your practice submits. Short minimum terms give you the flexibility to test the decision without risk. The larger your practice, the greater the saving compared with percentage-based billing fees.
- ✓Monthly-cancellable plans with no transaction costs
- ✓Price scales with practice size – not with prescription volume
- ✓Free trial period so you can experience it without commitment
Frequently asked questions
Do I need an institution identifier (IK) to bill directly?
Yes, direct billing under §302 SGB V requires your own IK number, which you can obtain free of charge through your professional association or ARGE IK. The software walks you through the setup and checks whether your IK is already enabled for electronic submission.
How long does switching from a billing centre to direct billing take?
If you already have an IK and existing insurer approval, experienced practices can complete their first test submission within a few days. The setup wizard and personal onboarding support substantially reduce the learning curve.
What happens when an insurer rejects a submission?
Error messages and returned submissions appear directly in the billing dashboard, assigned to the relevant prescriptions. You can see at a glance which items need correcting and resubmit once the correction is in place.
Is direct billing worthwhile for a small single-therapist practice?
Yes – and smaller practices often see the clearest benefit. A fixed monthly software fee stands in contrast to a variable billing fee that grows with every prescription. Beyond a certain number of prescriptions per month, direct billing becomes the more cost-effective option.
Start billing directly – try it free
Set up your practice and experience full direct billing under §302 SGB V at no risk. No billing centre, no transaction fees, no long-term commitment.