Last week, we learned how our reimbursement systems affect our practice's financial performance. This week, we’re going to take a long, hard look at our billing and collections process. Billing and Collections … A second key area of importance involves the processes used for billing and collections. Physicians/owners should think of this area as being akin to an assembly line that begins with patient registration and continues through insurance verification and eligibility, over-the-counter collections of copayments and deductibles, charge entry, initial billing and follow-up…

Last week, we discussed how you can spot weakness in your revenue cycle management. This week, we’re going to evaluate our reimbursement systems and see how they can be hurting the financial performance of your practice. Reimbursement Systems … As you saw last week, three of the five areas listed in the previous blog focus on revenue cycle management. Under the area of reimbursement systems, appropriate coding has been determined to be the single most important element for practice improvement, given that the majority of all providers under code. Therefore, implementing a coding…

If you have poor financial performance, then it could be due to your inattentive practices concerning your organization’s revenue cycle management process. Coding, EMR and PM software systems flaws, reimbursement methodologies, billing and collection processes, all have an adverse effect on your organization’s overall accounts receivable health. Since many urgent care center physicians/owners are not aware of this problem, they often cannot “stop the bleeding” prior to disaster striking. When there is a lack of appropriate oversight in your accounts receivable process…

Did you know the average person is exposed to the equivalent of 174 newspapers full of information daily? Even more interestingly, the average person receives 35 text messages a day, and the average office worker spends 28% of their time answering emails. It’s no wonder medical practice marketers are finding it more and more difficult to get their message into the mind of the consumers, but with “top of mind awareness” crucial to success in medical practice marketing, it’s imperative marketers find a way to cut through the marketing clutter. Enter the Infographic. Why…

Nearly 3.6 million occupational injuries and illnesses are treated each year in the United States. Those injured workers need somewhere to go for treatment, and many companies are irritated with the long wait times their employees face at the local emergency rooms. Additionally, most employers want a one-stop shopping-clinic model for all their occupational medicine needs. Your Medical Practice has the potential to fill this niche in your community. If your clinic is already offering drug screens, physicals, and pre-employment testing, adding workers’ compensation care to your practice…

When you decided to open your Medical Practice you probably had one thing in mind – a desire to help the people in your community get access to quality medical care in a quick and convenient setting. Somewhere along the way, however, you realized you also had to make money. Unlike selling food in a restaurant where you know what you make on each customer, collecting money for your services in the medical field can be puzzling. 1. Keep It Simple & Updated One of the first things you have to understand is fee schedules. Simply put, fee schedules are a specific dollar amount that will…

Your Medical Practice’s success depends ultimately on one very important thing: The way you treat your customers. Perhaps, the most critical point for your success to shine comes in how you treat your customers when they make a complaint. There are a variety of reasons one of your patients may make a complaint. Maybe they’re unhappy with the cost of the visit. Maybe their prescription did not get faxed to the correct pharmacy. They may not agree with the plan of treatment they have been given. No matter what the complaint is, each complaint can be canopied under: “Unmet…

For everything there is a season, and marketing your medical practice is no different. You cannot run the same marketing campaign year round and expect to get the same results. Instead, you must understand the four seasons of medical marketing. Understanding the seasons will help you know what to market and where to share your message at. Summertime Sizzle … If you want your medical practice patient volume to sizzle during the summer, you should plan on running campaigns about services or projects that can benefit your patients during this time. The good news is many of these campaigns can be…

You will sign a lot of contracts when you start your medical practice, and they all have the potential to impact your bottom line. But one type of contract will impact your incoming revenue more than most... That is why it is important for you to understand the different aspects of contracting with a managed care organization (MCO). A managed care organization is a provider-sponsored network, health maintenance organization, or healthcare plan, and your contract with the MCO will define your relationship with them. Examples of MCOs include Private Healthcare Systems (PHCS), First Health, and…

As an alternative to the emergency room, your medical practice facility can be a local employer’s best friend when injuries happen on the job. Unfortunately, billing Workers’ Compensation Insurance can be a headache for you if you do not gather the right information from the beginning and follow the proper steps throughout the payment process. Therefore, if you are going to add workers compensation to your occupational medicine program, you must understand how to bill the insurance. Step 1: Train Your Front Desk Staff … From the moment an injured worker shows up at your medical…