6 Physician Billing Tips to Maximize Collections

Tip 1: Demand Payment at the Point of Service Delivery

It makes things easier collecting the payment immediately upon delivery of services. In the long run, this can boost cash flow. Most of the time, patients understand and acknowledge the fact that they will have to bear a portion of the expense on their own. The onus is on the healthcare provider to constantly remind the patients about payment due date.

Check the patient eligibility before each appointment and make them aware that service can only be availed after pre-authorization and notify every patient that co-payment must be made without fail at the time of service. It can help boost revenue if patients are constantly reminded of the upfront payment collection policy from the moment they are in for service. A few wall signs should help remind them.

Tip 2: Ensure Easy Payment Option for Paying Remainder of the Bill

While billing patients, take care to ensure they are provided with statements that are readable and helps them remember when payments are overdue. If the billed amount isn't collected at the time of service, it can pose a hefty challenge in order to get paid which often involves repeated phone calls and emails. Turning to online payment option can be beneficial because digitized payment facility will remove the hassles involved in viewing bills and paying them electronically.

Tip 3: Ensure that Bill is Inclusive of All Service Particulars

Enforce a practice to include all particulars of the service so that the physician billing can lead to a higher payout. The bill must be comprehensive by including details that can be mapped to each component of the service that patients have availed. After coding the service and consumable required for the treatment, it must be reviewed by a professional medical coder to ensure consistency and accuracy. All procedures carried out at healthcare facility should be billed explicitly to prevent coders from omitting codes while filing claims. Electronic health record (EHR) helps hospitals to keep a tab on service extended to each user.

Tip 4: Establish a Well-structured Denial Management System

Denial management is the most demanding part of healthcare. It can put immense pressure on the revenue cycle management team to quickly sort out problems whenever claims return to the hospital. The responsibility to prevent claims from returning must be shared by physicians and medical coders. When claims are denied, the assessment should begin from the front end to see if any part of the procedure was overlooked. Once the error is noticed, it has to be logged into electronic health record so that future problems can be prevented while filing claims. Moreover, it is critical to quickly resolve the matter associated with claims denial and patients should only be involved if it is absolutely necessary.

Tip 5: Peruse the Compensation

Once the insurer compensates for services, the provider must audit the physician billing process if the payments received are inconsistent with the filed claims. It is important to note that payments for services can be dissimilar for patients. However, healthcare providers should ensure they are getting compensated appropriately for the services.

To get a clear picture, providers must assess the cost involved per patient. This includes staff wages, consumables, office space rent, and many other things. Healthcare providers should compare what they are being offered by each insurer to make sure they receive a profitable sum through reimbursement. One can find answers to what portion of the service is covered by referring to the electronic health record (EHR) or by using data analytics tool. Once you have the data indicating a low return on investment, it will enable you to appeal and renegotiate.

Tip 6: Switch to Business Intelligence for Maximum Efficiency

Data and more data is what helps avoid mistakes in physician billing; while data mining is important, it is critical for information to be accurate as well. It not only helps in the collection but can also improve the overall level of service and confidence. Improvements in billing tools and EHR has led to better reporting and decision making. Better and accurate reports help coders to anticipate typical billing errors and avoid them.

You can use our compilation of medical billing tips to improve collections and streamline healthcare services offered to patients. When less number of claims return, you can avoid hassles costing time and money in appealing to insurers.