Independent Contract NP and Billing

xenogenetic · Jan 2, 2015

One point even before you start billing, think long and hard regarding your ownership structure. Before you decide to take on a corporate entity (i.e. LLC, C corp, etc.) remember corporations don't enjoy the same constitutional protection as you do as an individual citizen. So, the name that you bill out as ("ACME Behavioral Health LLC" versus "Jane Doe, APRN") makes a big difference legally.

BeautynBrains_RN · Jan 2, 2015

I think I will go with the latter. I do not wish to make things more complicated than what they already are..

PMHNP-1 · Jan 4, 2015

When you use your name and are not incorporated, your personal assets - all of them - are at risk. The corporation is the only means of hiding behind the corporate veil.

If you are seeing patients, and you are going to the agency's office to see them, and charting in their charting software or other charts, that IS the charting needed. And then you're more of a contract employee, and get paid the percentage of fees specified in your contract with them: you wouldn't be billing the client or the client's insurance company. So if that is the setup, you need an independent contractor agreement with the agency.

If you're an independent contractor with contract with the agency, they can't tell you the hours you'll be there (i.e., you must be here every day from 8-5), they can't force you to work out of their office, they can't tell you how to treat the patients, etc....i.e., there are specific IRS regs concerning the diff between independent contractor and employee.

If you're seeing the patients that they refer to you, in your office, you own the chart. And you bill the patients and their insurance, and the agency gets no info about the referred patients unless the patient signs Release of Info to/from you and the agency. In which case, you'll probably want to be on the most widely used insurance panels in your area.

xenogenetic · Jan 4, 2015

The corp only hides you if you hire another employee and they commit the error/injury on behalf of your corp...and even then if you are aware your employee is committing the negligence you can be sued personally. If you personally perscribe and injure then you are going to get sued personally and the corp u set up is going to get sued as well. That's why its advantageous to always have personal professional Liability Insurance even if you work as a W-2 employee for a big company.

PMHNP-1 · Jan 5, 2015

No. If you own a corporation and you work within the corporation, you cannot be sued personally for work that the corporate employee did. The corporation and its assets are at stake. Not you, not your assets. If employees and owners were liable in corporations, we'd see a heck of a lot of bankers hanging out behind bars.

travelcrazyRN · Jan 18, 2015

LLC seems the safest way to go. LLCs easier to establish, and offers more protection for your personal assets that just having a personal business. This is something you would want to do your research on, and consult with a professional.

BeautynBrains_RN · Jan 24, 2015

That's what I'll do (LLC). Also, how do I obtain my own scripts for the patients that I see in residential group home settings?

medwave · Aug 7, 2017

I don't think you need your own medical billing software per se. I would find out if the client you have, that is outsourcing the job to you, has their own software that you can and should use.