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How to Choose the Right Credentialing, EHR, and Billing Partner for Your Practice?

Healthcare professionals launching telepsychiatry practices are hitting unexpected roadblocks with EHR selection and billing infrastructure. One practitioner captured the confusion: “I’m opening my startup telepsychiatry solo practice and want to outsource credentialing and full billing service with a plan to expand as a group practice. I am looking for a good EHR that has everything including full billing service.”

The discussion reveals platform limitations, hidden costs, and the reality that clinical work gets buried under administrative complexity.

The Epic Community Connect Reality

Many healthcare professionals want Epic, the gold standard EHR system. The telepsychiatry practitioner reached out about Community Connect: “I reached out to Epic directly and learned about Community Connect, but Epic didn’t seem to be too much interested in helping or explaining more about setting it up or how to integrate with the third party billing  maybe because the size of my clinic.”

Epic prioritizes large health systems and hospital networks, leaving solo and small group practices without practical implementation support or affordable options.

You Still Need an Actual Medical Biller

Healthcare professionals often misunderstand what EHR platforms provide. One experienced professional clarified: “So you have picked a few great platform options, but you will still need to hire an actual medical biller to perform all the billing duties in your platforms. Wasn’t sure if you were aware because of the way you worded some things.”

EHR platforms provide billing software tools but don’t perform actual billing work. Someone still needs to submit claims, monitor denials, handle prior authorizations, verify insurance eligibility, manage accounts receivable, code correctly, and navigate payer requirements.

One healthcare professional emphasized: “Every platform is going to have its problems, so I hope you’re able to get some feedback and suggestions about the others to make an informed decision!”

Credentialing Complexity for Telepsychiatry

Healthcare professionals emphasized critical considerations: “If you’re looking to expand in the future make sure you have your NPI2 and get set up as a group practice with your Tax ID during credentialing.”

Telepsychiatry faces specific challenges: “Not all insurances accept exclusively telehealth providers. And Medicare still has their rule that a patient must be seen in person every 6 months.”

The original practitioner responded strategically: “I won’t credentialed with Medicare or Medicaid at this structure of my solo telepsychiatry and if time allows I can expand to hybrid model where I will open a physical location. Will save those to see at my academic position full time job.”

Credentialing services often bundle with billing. One healthcare professional reported: “I have been using the billing service since start of this year when I started my group practice in NY, credentialing process is fairly simple for behavioral health providers so my billing company gave me credentialing services for free due to size of my group and my commitment with them on Billing services.”

What Healthcare Professionals Actually Want

The telepsychiatry practitioner articulated what many feel: “My main interest is clinical work and expand psych access so I don’t want to deal with admin. I want to outsource the billing so in a way I look for revenue cycle management (I think that is the jargon that they use). Sorry, all of this is new to me.”

Revenue cycle management (RCM) represents comprehensive billing support—not just software but actual human expertise handling the entire financial workflow from insurance verification through collections.

Healthcare professionals seek partners who handle credentialing, billing, and administrative operations while they focus on patient care and expanding mental health access.

Virtual RCM Specialists: The Alternative Practices Choose

While platform debates continue, healthcare professionals are discovering that specialized virtual revenue cycle management teams provide better results than platforms with mediocre support.

Virtual RCM specialists from India and Pakistan often have healthcare educational backgrounds including Medical Doctors, Nurses, and PharmDs, while companies also source talent from the Philippines and other countries with strong RCM capabilities. Many hold U.S. pharmacy licenses and MHA degrees overseas, ensuring clinical understanding combined with operational expertise.

These specialists handle insurance verification and credentialing, managing payer enrollment without the “6-8+ months” delays platforms experience. They submit claims accurately, manage denials and appeals, and handle behavioral health billing specifics that general platforms often mishandle.

Virtual specialists provide prior authorization management for telepsychiatry practices, especially for controlled substance prescriptions and ongoing therapy authorizations. They offer comprehensive RCM services with transparent pricing—typically under $2,000 monthly per full-time specialist versus local staff costs of $4,500 base salary plus payroll costs and benefits totaling up to $6,000 monthly. That’s $4,000+ monthly savings per position.

Virtual RCM teams work with any EHR platform—Tebra, CureMD, CareCloud, or even Epic. The specialist expertise matters more than platform selection when you have dedicated professionals managing the system.

HIPAA, SOC 2, and ISO 27001 compliance provides enterprise-level security for patient data with fully managed compliance oversight, ensuring telepsychiatry practices meet strict healthcare data protection requirements.

Healthcare professionals report that virtual specialists solve the core problem: “You will still need an actual medical biller to perform all the billing duties in your platforms.” Virtual RCM teams provide that expertise without overhead costs, benefits expenses, and management burden of local staff.

The Smart Telepsychiatry Approach

Healthcare professionals successfully launching telepsychiatry practices start with credentialing fundamentals—securing NPI2 and group practice Tax ID from day one, even for solo practices planning to expand. They focus on commercial insurance panels initially while maintaining Medicare/Medicaid at employed positions.

They choose EHR platforms based on clinical workflow, prioritizing e-prescribing reliability and clinical documentation features over billing software complexity, since billing operations will be handled by specialized teams.

They outsource administrative complexity from day one, partnering with virtual RCM specialists who handle credentialing, insurance verification, billing, and collections—allowing practitioners to focus on clinical work and expanding psych access.

They plan for scalability, building infrastructure that supports group practice expansion without requiring complete system overhauls when adding providers.

The consensus: “Every platform is going to have its problems.” What matters most is having skilled people managing your revenue cycle, not finding the perfect software.

Stop Choosing Between Imperfect Platforms and Start Getting Real RCM Results

Healthcare professionals launching telepsychiatry practices are discovering that platform selection matters less than having expert revenue cycle management support. Instead of navigating “awful customer service,” “6-8+ months” medication updates, and “wrong billings,” practices are choosing virtual RCM specialists who provide expert service from day one.

30-Day Telepsychiatry RCM Performance Guarantee

✓ Virtual Billing & Credentialing Specialists – Handle insurance enrollment, claims submission, denials, and appeals without platform limitations or support delays

✓ Behavioral Health RCM Expertise – Healthcare professionals with medical backgrounds who understand psychiatric billing specifics, prior authorization requirements, and payer rules

✓ Seamless EHR Integration – Work with your chosen platform (Tebra, CureMD, CareCloud, or any system) while you focus on clinical work

No percentage fees. No platform headaches. No administrative burden taking you away from patient care.

Focus on clinical work and expanding psych access while virtual specialists handle credentialing, billing, and revenue cycle management.

HIPAA-compliant. Healthcare-specialized starting at $9.50/hour. Under $2,000 monthly vs up to $6,000 local staff costs.

 

What did we learn? 

Selecting the right credentialing, EHR, and billing partner is one of the most critical decisions for any healthcare provider—especially for solo or telehealth practices. From the analysis and user feedback:

• Integration matters. Choosing a platform that seamlessly connects credentialing, billing, and EHR workflows prevents data errors and delays.

• Customer support can make or break your experience. Even top-rated systems like Tebra and CureMD received criticism for slow responses and poor issue resolution.

• User experience counts. Outdated interfaces (as reported in CureMD) can slow down clinical workflows and reduce satisfaction.

• Automation and updates are essential. Delayed e-prescribing updates or manual claim submissions disrupt clinical efficiency.

• Outsourcing to one trusted vendor that handles credentialing and billing together (like CareCloud or a specialized RCM company) simplifies management and improves cash flow.

• For telepsychiatry or small practices, outsourcing is cost-effective, ensuring compliance, faster reimbursements, and scalability without adding administrative burden.

What people are Asking?

1. What is a credentialing, EHR, and billing partner?
A company or vendor that manages your provider credentialing, electronic health record system (EHR), and medical billing operations—so your practice can focus on patient care while they handle administrative and financial workflows.

2. Why should I outsource these services instead of managing them in-house?
Outsourcing reduces administrative workload, ensures compliance, speeds up reimbursements, and helps avoid costly claim denials. It’s ideal for solo, telehealth, and small group practices.

3. Which is better  CureMD, CareCloud, or Tebra?
Each has pros and cons:

• CureMD: Affordable, includes credentialing and billing, but has outdated design and mixed reviews.

• CareCloud: Scalable and modern, integrates billing and EHR well, good for growing practices.

• Tebra (Kareo): Strong billing tools but weaker customer support and scheduling features.
  Your choice depends on your practice size, specialty, and budget.

4. Can I use my own billing team with these platforms?
Yes. Most EHR platforms allow integration with external billing teams or RCM companies. This is common in outsourced healthcare operations.

5. What should I look for in an outsourcing partner?
Key factors include:

• Transparent pricing and no hidden fees

• Experience in your specialty (e.g., psychiatry or telehealth)

• Reliable customer support

• Compliance with HIPAA and payer requirements

• Integrated credentialing, EHR, and billing workflows

6. Is outsourcing secure and HIPAA-compliant?
Yes if you choose a certified healthcare outsourcing company. Always verify their HIPAA compliance, data encryption standards, and Business Associate Agreement (BAA).

7. How does outsourcing improve revenue cycle management (RCM)?
Experts manage claims, coding, and payer follow-ups efficiently—reducing denials, increasing reimbursements, and maintaining steady cash flow.

8. Can outsourcing work for telepsychiatry or virtual practices?
Absolutely. Many providers running 100% remote or hybrid practices outsource all back-office tasks—from credentialing to billing—while they focus solely on virtual patient care.

Disclaimer

For informational purposes only; not applicable to specific situations.
For tailored support and professional services,

please contact Staffingly, Inc. at (800) 489-5877
Email : support@staffingly.com.

About This Blog : This Blog is brought to you by Staffingly, Inc., a trusted name in healthcare outsourcing. The team of skilled healthcare specialists and content creators is dedicated to improving the quality and efficiency of healthcare services. The team passionate about sharing knowledge through insightful articles, blogs, and other educational resources.