Many practices make common and costly revenue cycle management mistakes without even realizing it.
Physicians are trained to be physicians. What they aren’t generally trained on is how to run the business side of their practices, and that’s probably why revenue cycle mismanagement is such a huge problem throughout the medical industry. Without the ability to properly manage your revenue cycle, you might be inadvertently hurting your bottom line, but luckily, your go-to revenue cycle management experts in Colorado are here to help. Here are some of the most common mistakes practices make in revenue cycle management:
Mistake #1. Failing to collect at the time of service.
Did you know that your chances of collecting a payment plunge the moment your patient walks out the door? While some practices don’t like the idea of having to hassle patients about payment — and feel much more comfortable with the idea of sending a letter or making a phone call — collecting at the time of service gives you a much better chance of actually collecting.
Mistake #2. Failing to appeal denied claims.
Just as your in-house billing team consists of human beings who are capable of making errors, insurance companies consist of human beings too. The fact of the matter is that the claims process isn’t perfect, and mistakes can and do get made by both parties. Even a simple coding error on your part could lead to a denied claim, and if you simply accept denials without appealing or finding how or why they were denied, you’re going to miss out on revenue.
Mistake #3. Failing to verify your patients’ eligibility.
You’d be surprised at how many practices won’t verify their patients’ copay amounts or eligibility until they actually leave the office, which we learned in the first mistake we went over, makes the whole process a lot harder than it has to be. In order to collect payment at the time of service, you need to know how much the copay is going to be, and that means that you need to verify the patient’s eligibility. And, luckily, there are now automatic tools that make it easy to do just that at check-in.
Mistake #4. Failing to provide your patients with payment options they can work with.
Research has shown that medical bills that are unexpected are much harder for Americans to pay than medical bills that are expected, and these are the balances most likely to be sent to collections. However, there are things you can do to make it easier for them to pay, which will, in turn, help to recoup revenue that would otherwise be lost. Payment plans, for instance, allow patients to pay down large, past-due amounts little by little, making it easier for your patients to actually afford to pay down the bill.
It’s all too easy to make costly mistakes in managing your practice’s revenue cycle, but we hope that learning about some of the most common mistakes will help you avoid them in the future.
If you’re looking to free up some of your time and make your revenue cycle more streamlined and effective, contact the professionals at Bonded Business Services today!
