Setting Default Billing and Draw Options for Diagnostic Providers

Once a diagnostic provider is Active for your practice, you can configure its default billing and draw options. A fax provider added with a fax number is active right away and starts with Pay at service center billing and, for labs, a PSC draw. An electronic provider becomes active once SigmaMD sets up its interface.

How to Access the Settings

1. Navigate to Practice Settings > Diagnostics and open the Diagnostic providers tab.
2. You will see a list of diagnostic providers that have been added to your practice.
3. Hover over an Active provider and click Edit provider (pencil icon). The Edit Provider dialog includes:
   • Default billing (available for both labs and imaging)
   • Default draw (available for labs only)
4. Click Save.

Default Billing Options

These options define how the patient’s diagnostic services will be paid for:

• Pay in clinic: Your practice collects payment from the patient directly, and the diagnostic provider bills the clinic.
• Use insurance: The patient’s insurance details are included with the order, and the diagnostic provider bills the insurance directly.
• Pay at service center: The patient pays at the Patient Service Center (PSC) during their visit. These orders always use a PSC draw.

Tip: If most of your orders are billed through insurance, we recommend setting Use insurance as the default billing option.

Default Draw Options (Labs Only)

These options determine where the specimen will be collected:

• In office: The sample is drawn at your clinic.
• PSC: The patient visits the Patient Service Center to have their sample drawn.

Tip: Set this to In office if your practice typically draws labs onsite. Otherwise, choose PSC for external collections.

Default Phlebotomy Fee

You can turn on a phlebotomy fee in Billing → Settings, under Phlebotomy Fee. It's one setting for the whole practice, not for each diagnostic provider.

When enabled, the fee is automatically added to lab orders billed as Pay in clinic with an In-office draw, can be adjusted at the order level, and appears on the patient’s invoice as a separate line item.

Why Set Defaults?

Setting these defaults helps streamline the lab and imaging order workflows in SigmaMD. The defaults will be pre-selected when placing new orders, saving time and reducing errors. You can still change the billing and the draw on each order.

To learn how to request a diagnostic provider interface, refer to this article: Requesting a Lab or Imaging Interface in SigmaMD.