Convenience and resource savings. Time and money resources. That is what electronic invoicing offers. However, in the many articles in which we have discussed this advance brought about by digital transformation, we have done so from a general perspective. Executives, financial controls, accounting... at a general level. But what effects can on the healthcare sector? Now that this is one of the markets most affected by the pandemic, how might it be impacted? Is it regulated in any specific way? Could it have the same impact on the finances of a dentist as on those of a private practice general practitioner? These are many questions, and we will try to provide some answers in this article.
Resolving questions about electronic invoicing in healthcare
It is very likely that, due to COVID-19, medicine is one of the sectors that has been experiencing the most media and labor turmoil in recent months. Not only that, but with this turmoil, it is also likely that deficiencies have been detected in the management of certain business or corporate processes.
If you are a manager of a company linked to the healthcare sector, you will have noticed that there is much room for improvement. Procedures that, if managed differently, could facilitate your financial controls and make them more efficient, help you with accounting, and benefit you when it comes to electronic invoicing or, for example, recording and controlling the employee expenses of your sales representatives.
The reality is that there are still doubts about electronic invoicing in healthcare, as can be seen from the types of searches being conducted on the Internet. So, to managers of companies and businesses in the medical sector: here we try to provide answers to some of those questions.
What is electronic invoicing in healthcare?
At the linguistic level, electronic invoicing in healthcare means exactly the same as in construction, tourism, or any other sector. In other words, an electronic invoice is the document that records the sale of a product or service, but with the exception that it is processed through IT solutions. Solutions such as those offered by easyap are examples of the innovation that has taken place and will continue to take place in the issuance of electronic invoices.
Electronic invoicing in the healthcare sector will therefore, as in other sectors, enable digitalized control of commercial operations as they are carried out. Invoices are recorded in solutions such as easyap with their own characteristics (date of issue, receipt, storage, etc.), whether in the healthcare sector or any other.
What rules or laws regulate electronic invoicing in healthcare?
In this regard, each country has its own legislation on electronic invoicing. What is certain is that, at the institutional level, administrations are advocating for a digital future. For this reason, today it is possible to manage transactions of all kinds 100% online with the vast majority of national administrations. And it doesn't matter whether your company belongs to the healthcare sector or any other.
Currently, in Spain, according to Law 25/2013, of December 27, the following public entities or administrations are required to process electronic invoices for healthcare or any other sector:
- The central government, regional governments, and local governments. This also includes the Provincial Councils and General Assemblies of the Historical Territories of the Basque Country.
- Social Security Social Security.
- Public public universities.
- Independent public law courts, whether regional or national.
- The competent bodies of Congress, the Senate, the CGPJ (General Council of the Judiciary), the Court of Auditors, the Constitutional Court, the Ombudsman, and the regional legislative assemblies.
In other words, all political bodies of public authority in Spain have the capacity to generate and process electronic invoices, whether with private or public companies in any sector.
How to manage signatures in electronic invoicing?
In turn, many suppliers sometimes have doubts about one of the most important aspects of invoicing: the signature. In the case of online invoicing with the public administration, it is sufficient to use an electronic signature certificate. The easyap solution integrates electronic signatures for digital invoices, so you won't have any problems in this regard and you can forget about any inconvenient procedures.
Advantages of digital invoicing in the healthcare sector
In Spain, where we combine private and public healthcare, the truth is that citizens have many of their basic needs covered. However, the industry goes much further and does not cover all types of medical services. Services that, if we want to enjoy them (for example, cosmetic operations or certain surgeries), we will have to pay for. In these cases, online healthcare billing plays its role.
Let's take an example to understand this: a private cosmetic clinic that specializes in implanting prostheses will have to deal with approved laboratories and factories for the plastics and other materials used in them. And something similar can happen with public hospitals. They also buy and sell specific, approved materials for implanting prostheses.
Well, in both cases, electronic invoicing is a real step forward, as it offers advantages such as those listed below:
- It allows for exhaustive digital control of expenses and quantities.
- There is no risk of losing documents such as delivery notes, etc., since everything is recorded in the system.
- It offers numerous facilities to both the sender and the recipient when carrying out transactions.
- They are managed with greater agility.
- Generates savings in material costs such as paper or printing in general, as well as storage.
- It allows for better control of the traceability of financial transactions that are carried out.
These benefits primarily generate time and cost savings for many businesses in the healthcare sector and many others. In addition, all these procedures are becoming increasingly secure, thanks to protocols and systems such as the Peppol network. Peppolnetwork.
Electronic Invoicing in the Healthcare Sector
Electronic invoicing in healthcare lags behind in Spain
However, it seems that many companies in the sector are still unaware of these benefits. Or they simply do not dare to apply them.Electronic invoicing in healthcare accounted for only 0.12% of all digital invoices issued in Spain in 2020. The percentage improves slightly when we look at the receipt of electronic invoices by healthcare companies. Specifically, it rises to 0.38%.
The figures we have just listed show that the sector, which includes hospitals, outpatient clinics, dental clinics, and pharmacies, still has a long way to go. Furthermore, although the issuance of electronic invoices is growing compared to previous years within the medical sector, it is doing so at a slower pace than other sectors. In 2018, electronic invoices issued by companies in the healthcare sector accounted for 0.36% of the total, while, as mentioned above, in 2020 they only accounted for 0.12%.
However, if we continue to look at the same study, other large sectors in our country are already moving toward a digital, more agile, and convenient future. In fact, overall, the total volume of electronic invoices issued in Spain during 2020 did grow. The total number of electronic invoices issued in our country was 240,731,047, which is an increase of 16.60% compared to 2019. In turn, also in comparison with the previous year's data, 34,266,994 more were issued in Spain.
Why trust easyap for business invoicing?
In short, and as we have seen in other articles, digital technology is the future and the present. It is already here, in organizations of all kinds and in public administrations. This article on the state of electronic invoicing in healthcare is a perfect snapshot of how certain executives, and consequently certain sectors, are still reluctant to take a step forward.
This is a step that institutions have already taken. Aware that the savings in time and money are palpable, they are already legislating with regulations that advocate online invoicing in healthcare, construction, and any other sector that so desires. Perhaps, if you are a manager or financial director, you are put off by the handling and management of technology.
However, that's what we're here for, easyap. We have extensive experience in finance and IT applied to a wide range of sectors: distribution, banking, telecommunications, tourism... And in projects that have been carried out in various countries in Europe, America, and Africa.
Solutions such as ours provide numerous benefits in electronic invoicing to executives in any sector. Above all, we are talking about long-term time and cost savings, which are also advantages applicable to any sector and market. Many companies have already placed their trust in our services and have not been disappointed. Why not get in touch with us?
