Charge by line
Posted By: Diane in NY on 2007-03-20
In Reply to: Question regarding IC pay by line vs. by page... - Laurie
Hi Laurie,
The last time I had an account for myself, and not through an MTSO, I charged 14 cents a line. That was as recently as December. I did not print the reports out though! I also did the pick up and drop off but since it was extremely close to the hubby, he did that for me  So I'm guessing since you are doing all that extra work, 16 cents a line?
Good luck!
Complete Discussion Below:  marks the location of current message within thread
The messages you are viewing
are archived/old.
To view latest messages and participate in discussions, select
the boards given in left menu
Other related messages found in our database
I'd still charge by line, just charge a lower
rate, like maybe 8 cpl. Do you have to pickup and deliver work? You could also setup a one-month contract until you see how it goes and then you can figure out the best way to charge and go from there. You could also charge a flat rate per page and keep it fairly low.
Curious, do most IC's usually charge by the gross line or 65 character line?
Thank you~
PS on line charge
One thing to remember is that if they add those other six facilities you will need help and with only charging 8 cpl you won't be able to pay someone much to help and so your quality of help might not be that great. Also I count my headers in my gross line. I do a lot of 9 to 12 page consults and add on 4 to 5 spaces depending on the length of the header per page to the line count. And my accounts know that my line count is based on Courrier 12 and NOT the font that they chose to use. I am upfront about that. Change back to it when I do my line count. Again, it is a starting point and good luck. If you need help or have questions either E-mail me or post on here again. Patti
how much to charge per line
I have the opportunity to transcribe insurance reports. I would be subcontracting. Any idea how much to charge per line? Is WordPerfect the best program? I live in the Southeastern US. Any other info greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance.
charge per line
I do 11.5 to 12 cpl but gross lines. My accounts have been with me many years -- some 18+, and so I know them inside and out. For any new accounts that might come along I would start them at 12.5 cpl. I do pick up and deliver, provide sticky paper, envelopes all in the price. Reruns also. But again, my accounts have been with me a lonnnnnnnnnnng time and I can do 500 to 600 lines per hour and they pay on time without questions asked about my lines or anything. In fact have stopped giving them daily line counts, they only want totals now. So we trust each other. But start around 12.5 or so and go from there. Patti
I charge per line.
I do the clinic notes for a clinic in our area for free since they are a ministry/outreach program. I cannot take a charitable deduction at the end of the year for this. It's considered volunteer work and is not tax-deductible.
and how much do you charge a line?
are you willing to say? most people wont which is weird since most of you on here are anonymous.
I never thought to factor those costs into my line count, especially after i was just underbid for 2 cents less than I already charge.
Charge per line
I thought I posted this successfully earlier but I don't see it.
What is a fair charge per line. I currently am charging my client 12 cpl but am thinking that is low. Also, how many characters per line are you using?
Thank you
Lynn
Charge per line
Thank you for the information. May I ask what state you are working in. These will be office notes, pretty basic stuff.
Why don't we (MTs) charge by the gross line?
-
I, too, charge by the gross line (sm)
I used to charge 14 cents a gross line and delivered and picked up every day, printed reports, provided a list of each report transcribed, and reprinted lost reports, all at no extra charge. Only one of my clients has ever been a real stickler for 24-hour TAT, so I'm lucky in that regard. When things get too busy, I do the best I can. Then I went to 12 cents a gross line as I could no longer pick up and deliver every day. This was 10 years ago that I switched from 14 to 12 cents. I haven't raised my rates in a long time but am pretty comfortable where I'm at now with my rates as I no longer print, have gone digital, have good dictators and report types, and also there's India to consider. I'm in central California which is not nearly as expensive a place to live as southern California. I would *think* your area could support 16 cents a line but I really don't know if India would be a concern for you? We have quite a few docs around here using India but a lot wouldn't consider it an option. You can always ask for more and see what they say, but you also want to be given the chance to dazzle them with your skills so they think they can't do without you. With the cost of living increasing, if you aren't making enough due to the type of reports/dictators you already have, I would definitely approach them with the idea of an increase.
I charge by 65-character line (sm)
My clinics have wanted 0.5-inch margins on the side. One of them wanted 10-point Times font. I think 65-character lines are fair for both parties.
average charge per line
Just starting out on my own and have been asked by a local chiropractor to handle his transcription. I don't want to undercut other sub-contractors charges but don't want to quote too high either, especially being new. How can I find out the average charge per line for chiro transcription?
I charge .10 a gross line.
.
I also charge whatever the line count totals. How are you--sm
supposed to keep track of what she changes and what is a straight normal? It still takes you time and Keystrokes to input the macro.
They reportedly charge 7 cents a line. nm
I am in Ohio, but have friends in MI and MO that charge 15/line.
You may need to check further. You may undercutting yourself.
Tell him for demand jobs you charge .02 more a line - sm
maybe that will cool him off, or if he wants 12 hour TAT .01 more a line.
I charge by 65-char line with spaces...sm
The two accounts I've worked on wanted 0.5 inch margins on both sides. One of the accounts wants 10-point Times. The other wants 12-point Times. They want the margins so big because they are trying to save on their paper costs, because the sticky back paper (I think that's what they use) is apparently quite expensive. I send the documents via e-mail for them to print on their own. Anyway, charging for a 65-character line with spaces nets me more than a gross line because of the margins, font, and typeface. Try it with your line counter. I have one built into my Instant Text (which I don't use for invoices) and SylCount. Both of them show that the gross line is quite a bit less when the margins are this big.
Why not charge for spaces? You type 'em like you type a letter or number! 
15 cents a line AND charge mileage
nm
65-char line to client and charge for gross? sm
That's a bit underhanded. If they ever get suspicious, your line counts are going to exceed what they count at 65 char. a line. You said yourself that 65-char/line and gross line are two different things, so why do you contract with the client saying you bill for one and actually bill for another ?? That's shady, IMO, and I would never quote my client a 65-char line and then charge them for gross line.
Own accounts, line charge, MTSO percentage
I think you might have posted this same question about a week ago. I take anywhere from 20 to 30% on an account from my IC's that covers my being the QA, the accountant, the customer service rep, the go between and the relief transcriptionist. I really think you MTSO is being more than fair. Stop and think if and when you get your own accounts, would you only keep 25% if someone was typing for you? Sometimes it is hardly worth my time to keep the accounts for the IC's as the time I spend on those accounts I accounts I could be typing and earning $30 to $40 instead of the $10 to $12 that I get when someone else types it. Remember when you have your own accounts there is no one to cover for you when you are sick, your child is sick, you go on vacation, holidays, etc. There is always a flip side to the coin. I do wish you luck but there is more into doing your own accounts than you realize.
I charge 1.5 times my regular line rate.
Absolutely not! Most editors do not charge by the line. A good editor
knows that line pay is not fair pay, or let's say a quality editor knows that line pay is not fair pay. I have done some VR editing and believe me, the ones I did you literally had to retype the whole report. Figure out an hourly rate that would work for you and don't take anything less. Editors or QA people should not be paid on production. That's the final step to quality and some of these groups, services, will learn that one day! Some of the better ones already know that. 
I would charge more per line for working holidays or if asked to work scheduled days off. SM
But did you address that in your contract?
Does this seem fair? To charge .16 per line - includes printed reports, copies on disk for one year
and delivery. I do travel twice a week to this office. Plus, at times I will fax or email the reports free of charge. I live in Southern California in an upscale area.
Thanks again!
Charge what the credit card companies charge when they don't get paid on time!!!!
Audio hour charge - what is fair rate to charge company?
Doubt you can charge 15 cpl for VR work to the docs - you can't even charge them 12 for straight
x
you don't have to charge $60/HR - all you have to do is charge a good rate and then..
work smart, not hard. If you have a great dictator, charge him 14 cpl on a 65 char gross line, then set up your templates and word expanders, you can make $80/hr. But you need all three to work together, otherwise you might only be making $60/hr. Some people are just really good at what they do - shouldn't they make more if they are more productive?
One office I charge .12, another I charge $2.25 page--nm
//
A gross line is anything on a line is a line. A line set at 65 characters means it sm
has 1-inch margins on each side. The maximum number of characters on that line would be 65 and that includes spaces. If there is 1 character on that line it is a line.
A standard 65-character line usually consists of 65 characters with spaces unless, of course, the employer does not pay for spaces and then it would be 65-characters without spaces.
Anything on the line makes up a line even if just one letter or number. Every line of print is a
s
Gross line = each line on page counts as a line, even if it's only 1 word. nm
x
Gross line means anything on a line is counted as a line.
You can get an idea in the difference using documents you have already created, assuming you're working in Word. Simply open a document and check the properties. Click on the statistics tab and you will see the number of lines as well as characters with and without spaces. If you're currently getting paid by the line and a line is 65-characters with spaces, do the math and see how that number of lines compares with the number of lines in your stats.
One thing to keep in mind: if you have a blank line between paragraphs, instead of hitting the enter key twice, format your document to give the appearance of blank lines between paragraphs.
Gross line, also including blank lines because my line rate is so low. It all works out in the wash.
x
$.06 gross line / .70 = approximately $.0857 cents per 65 character line.
A gross line is anything on a line versus 65 gross characters per net line the other way. You make more money working for the gross line than for the 65 gross character line, as long as the line rate's OK.
A gross line is any line with typewritten characters on it - no matter how long or SM
how short. So your gross lines may be longer than 65 characters, but you get credit even for a line as short as "Sincerely,". If your gross lines are not being counted that way, then you are not being counted on gross lines and are probably getting screwed. I'd look into that if I were you.
Yes if gross line or 65 character line with spaces....Good Deal!!! nm
x
1) do you have a contract stating line counting and line rate,sm
if you look at the IRS website it's pretty clear what constitutes IC versus SE versus employee. You might want to photocopy that along with a copy of your contract with your next invoice and also put on the invoice any monies due from past invoices they "changed"...maybe catch more flies with honey than vinegar. Good luck!
New England, 16.50/hr, 8 cents a line after minimum line count..
full benefits available with general contribution by the hospital before you start paying for them, retirement, 403b, all benefits, and working at home as an employee, BUT, you have to live local to the hospital.
I changed my line to a business line, talked to a supervisor sm
at SBC, told him what I was using the service for, and got the okay to use it -- $49/month unlimited.
I have also used The Neighborhood, and their unlimited is truly unlimited. I also explained to them when I signed up what I was using it for and their comment was "unlimited means just that -- unlimited, no matter what." I cannot remember how much they were, but it might be worth checking into for you. (www.theneighborhood.com)
Good luck!
What is the average line/hour for a 65 character line with spaces? NM
.
it certainly is not pay worthy at 4.5 line or 3 line. I know the companies cram it down our throats
nm
Okay well if you are going to charge 10 cpl..what do your MTs get?
Maybe they are looking out for the little people getting paid a little more?? I see a lot of aspects of this you haven't researched. Ask questions, learn from their decisions so you are better prepared next time.
how much do you charge?
What should I charge?
I've never solicited my own accounts before, but my fiance's sister called me yesterday asking if I'd be interested in transcribing some letters for the dermatologist she works for. I said sure, since I'd like to go all independent, and this is a good way to try it out. Only problem is, I'm not sure what to charge. I'll be using the doctor's transcriber (she uses tapes, and I don't have a tape player), and it isn't decided yet whether I'll be emailing the completed letters to her, or printing them myself. What would be an average rate?
Is there a law on this? Don't think there is; not sure. You should be able to charge whatever U w
What I Charge
I also work for an insurance company doing claim tapes. I charge $3.00 a page. My reports can vary anywhere from a few pages up to 25 pages, which I actually did last night (I don't think I've done any longer than that). I'm not sure if this helps or not. I use Tahoma 10 with the margins the same as what you're using.
I get 9 CPL for a nat'l, and charge 12 CPL...nm
I charge
12 cents per line, 65 character line. With HIPAA issues, don't forget better grab yourself a carrier that reports will fit in to take back--one that locks. This is very important in case you are in an accident taking their reports back. It happens.
|
