EMR vs EHR: What’s the Difference & Why it Matters

Ever think that one acronym or letter can make a huge difference? That’s exactly what happened when healthcare professionals or facilities talk about the EHR and EMR systems. Providers often think that these two terms (EHR and EMR) can be used interchangeably, but they aren’t. There are differences between using these terms, when you should use them, and when you shouldn’t. So, it is all based on their roles, features, and specifically interoperability characteristics.

Do you really know what EMR vs. EHR software does in medical billing services? If so, read this guide to the end and choose the best option for your practice to boost efficiency and streamline your revenue cycle management.

What is EMR in Healthcare?

EMR in healthcare refers to the Electronic Medical Records – a digital form or chart of a patient’s medical history. Using this EMR system, healthcare professionals can record everything related to each patient, improving patient care and billing processes.

Further, the doctor no longer needs to compile patient records to maintain patients’ health data, as they did before the EMR was introduced. And now they can easily gather all documents within one system. From the patient’s personal information to the medical history, i.e, lab results, prescriptions, medications, and much more, a doctor can secure within the practice and get access anytime, from anywhere.

Let’s examine how changes to EMR systems affect the healthcare industry.

By using EMR software, practices save time on managing paperwork and can focus more on how to improve the patient’s health.
They can access patients’ demographics digitally and update them with one click when needed.
Physicians can easily track patients’ current medications, dosage instructions, and allergies, which helps them make informed decisions.

What is EHR in Medical Billing?

The EHR in medical billing refers to the “Electronic Health Record” system – a digital tool that secures everything related to the patient’s medical history. By using EHR software, practices reduce administrative workload, increase efficiency, and can focus more on patients’ health care.

Additionally, using EHR software for medical billing purposes can add incredible value, improving the overall process. Here’s what it does;

It allows integration with any practice management software, billing system, or any other clinical records tools, helping practices automate the billing process.
Further, it eliminates manual data entry and pulls up all records-related information within the system, boosting workflow efficiency.
Moreover, using EHR systems allows you to share patient health information across providers and clinics easily.

EMR Vs. EHR Software: Key Differences Between the Two

Here are the key differences between EMR and EHR that are game-changers for the healthcare industry, streamlining medical billing processes and helping practices grow.

Scope and Coverage

EMR (Electronic Medical Record) – The main difference between EMR and EHR is the scope and coverage of information. EMR systems allow only a single practice or provider to save the patient’s medical chart records within the software.

On the other hand, EHR (Electronic Health Records) software enables healthcare practices to secure the patient’s overall health history, which helps every practice and provider have access to that information and make an informed decision for the patient’s care.

Interoperability and Sharing

In today’s healthcare industry, sharing patients’ health records enables care to be provided from anywhere. And that’s what EHR does exactly. EHR platforms enable healthcare organizations to share a patient’s medical records, including preventive care prescriptions, clinical notes, and health progress, with doctors and other healthcare networks.

Conversely, using electronic medical records means you can’t share information digitally with other medical practices – it stays within the single practice. So, if you need to share it with another doctor for better patient care, you must print it and hand it over.

Purpose and Usage

EMR software improves clinical documentation and streamlines medical billing by automating tasks. It ensures accurate assignment of medical codes and entry of patients’ data during claim submission, speeds up the revenue cycle, and reduces errors.

EHR (electronic health records) system not only centralize patient data management but also closes the gap between clinical documentation and the reimbursement process. It captures records of rendered services and helps assign medical codes, ensuring accuracy and improving the clean claim rate. Further, it enables providers to verify insurance eligibility in real time, minimizing errors, saving time by eliminating manual workflows, and reducing the risk of denials.

Features	EMR (Electronic Medical Records)	EHR (Electronic Health Records)
Scope	A digital record of a patient’s health information – within a single practice.	A centralized and electronic form of patients’ previous and current health information — detailed and comprehensive across various providers and practices.
Purpose	Mainly to manage the medical history (diagnosis and treatments) of patients for claim submission.	Focus on patient-centric data to help providers know well from anywhere.
Integration With Software	No other software can integrate with the EMR systems.	Allows PMS tools, billing software, and other clinical records to be integrated.
Patient Portal Access	No, it’s limited – only allows patient data management.	Yes, it enables patients to see their billing analytics reports through the dashboard, informing them about the revenue cycle management.
Interoperability	No, data sharing is not allowed.	Yes, it is designed to share data across healthcare organizations and providers from anywhere, anytime.

What are the Benefits of Using EHR and EMR Software?

There are several benefits to using EHR and EMR software. Some of them include;

Improve Financial Workflow

In traditional medical billing, every practice works manually, which takes long hours to verify patients’ eligibility, assign codes, and submit claims. With EHR and EMR, the process becomes easier, more accurate, and faster than before.

By using EHR and EMR software, healthcare providers can store and protect patients’ data, automate billing tasks such as patient demographics checks, catch errors during claim submission, and streamline financial and administrative billing tasks, which directly affects the revenue cycle growth.

Better Patient Care

By using EHR and EMR software, you can get access to patients’ health data, which helps you make an informed decision about treatment plans and medication, all of which enables you achieve better outcomes.

Track & Monitor Claims

Many EHR systems enable practices and facility providers to track and monitor insurance claims, helping you minimize the A/R days cycle and improve reimbursement rates. Further, it allows you to manage denials effectively, resolve issues, and draft a strong appeal letter to recover lost revenue.

Boost Revenue Cycle Process

By automating every task of the billing process, such as patients’ eligibility verification, medical coding, and timely claim submission, practices can focus on managing their revenue cycle.

Security and Compliance

In healthcare billing, staying fully compliant with payer-specific policies, coding changes, and HIPAA rules is as important as receiving payments for rendered services. That’s the biggest advantage EHR and EMR systems offer. This software is designed to stay up to date with healthcare industry policies, helping prevent fraud, reduce the high costs of penalties, and mitigate data breaches.

EHR and EMR: Which Software is Best Suited for Your Practice?

It all depends on your medical practice’s size, goals, and needs. However, both software has it’s unique features, advantages, and also disadvantages – so before considering any of them, you must know which is best suited for your practice.

Generally, small practices go for EMR software because it is cost-effective to buy, can protect patients’ data, track it, and automate tasks — all within a single practice. In contrast, EHR systems are usually best suited for large healthcare organizations, hospitals, and telehealth providers that need to support virtual patient care, as they help share or transfer health records with other providers/practices, enabling informed decision-making.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is it safe to use EHR and EMR software?

Generally, it is safe to use EHR and EMR platforms for healthcare organizations, as they both offer data integrity, compliance, and security, and comply with U.S. health network rules and regulations – enhancing revenue cycle management services and improving patient care and engagement.

Which EHR software can I use for my practice?

There are various EHR software you can use for your practice. However, it depends on your practice’s size, goals, and requirements. Some of the major EHR software include AthenaHealth, CureMD, NextGen Healthcare, eClinicalWorks, and many more that help streamline the healthcare billing process.

Can electronic health record (EHR) systems reduce denials?

Yes, electronic health record (EHR) software is designed to automate billing tasks, such as real-time insurance coverage checks, and to capture missing patient demographics, coding errors, and incorrect modifiers even before claim submission — everything that effectively supports denials reduction and improves the overall reimbursement process.

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