Every legal and payer claim carries a citation to a primary source. Where a rule is unsettled or varies by state, we say so. Maintained by Lemma, a banking platform for healthcare practices. Product mentions live in clearly marked asides. For MSO, DSO, and corporate practice of medicine topics, see the companion MSO-PC Wiki.
Who this is for
How the site is organized
The guide follows the arc of practice ownership. Each tab is a phase, left to right: orient, then form, fund, build, get paid, operate, and eventually scale or exit. Jump to the phase you’re in. Reference sits alongside as the lookup layer you keep coming back to.Start Here
Orient, see the four-month launch map, and pick your practice model.
Form
The entity and CPOM, ownership agreements, licenses, insurance, and hiring.
Fund
Startup costs, practice loans, buying a practice, and the lease.
Build
Your EHR, clearinghouse, front-desk stack, banking, payroll, and HIPAA.
Get Paid
Credentialing, payer setup, EFT/ERA, patient payments, and how insurance money moves.
Operate
KPIs, bookkeeping, the tax and compliance calendars, and associate comp.
Scale
Partners, a second location, going out of state, and the MSO structure.
Exit
Selling your practice and planning succession.
Reference
The owner’s task repo, checklists, state-rule tables, the payer directory, and the glossary.
Contents
Start Here
- Launch in four months: the whole sequence on one page
- Launching your practice 101, how your practice gets paid, and setting up your banking
- Practice models: insurance, cash-pay, telehealth, hybrid
Form
- Choose your entity and entity and tax basics; CPOM and the PC
- Ownership agreements and owning without a license
- Licenses and permits, malpractice and insurance, hiring W-2 vs. 1099
Fund
- Startup cost calculator and worksheet
- Get a practice loan and loan options
- Buy a practice, deal mechanics, and negotiate your lease
Build
- Choose your EHR, clearinghouse, and front-desk stack
- Setting up banking and account structure; payroll and benefits; HIPAA in one week
Get Paid
- Set up payers: credentialing, CAQH, Medicare/PECOS, Medicaid, contracting, EFT/ERA, and switch banks
- Patient payments: POS, patient responsibility, and financing
- How insurance money moves: claim lifecycle, what is an 835?, ERA vs. EOB, denial codes, and reassociation
- Money operations: work your denials, lockboxes, reconciliation, month-end close, and patient refunds
Operate
Scale
- Scaling beyond one practice is the map; then associates or partners, open a second location, expand out of state, become an MSO, and multi-entity money
Exit
Reference
- The Owner’s Task Repo, checklists, and forms library
- State rules: CPOM by state, telehealth by state, and entity types by state
- Payer EFT/ERA enrollment directory and glossary
Next
Launching your practice 101
The map. Read it once before doing anything, because the expensive mistakes come from doing steps in the wrong order.