Patient Collections

Patient Collections


Collection Methodology Goals

  • Collection on self-pay accounts will be a mutually agreed upon plan of action.
  • The goal of the MPMS staff is to respond to all denials within 48 hours.
  • All self-pay accounts and claims are reviewed at 60 days to ensure a plan of action is in place for resolution.
  • MPMS audits credit balances and provides recommendations for resolution.
  • Any account to be assigned to collections agency will need approval from the client.
  • Any patient calls regarding clinical issues shall be worked in collaboration with the provider involved.
  • The MPMS staff is open to taking on clients old accounts receivable and all the work in reviewing said accounts.

MPMS processed over 450,000 encounters last year.

Collect More Reimbursement by Correcting This Big Issue

Operations Director Laurie Troemel was recently asked to contribute to the following article by The Coding Institute

MPMS processed over 450,000 encounters last year.

Following up on your claims is just as important as submitting them.

As ophthalmologists face the prospect of changing reimbursement amounts in 2018 and the potential issues that MIPS will bring, practices can’t risk making any mistakes that threaten your income. To ensure that your billing processes are set up to collect every penny, read on for several expert tips that will help you bring in more of the cash that you deserve.

Monitor Every Claim You File

If you do nothing else to tighten up your billing process, at least take this one key tip to heart: Pay attention to what happens to every claim you submit. Follow the claims through the submission and payment processes so if a claim is delayed, you can follow up quickly.

If you bill the claim and forget about it, you’re likely to fall so far behind in your accounts receivables (A/R) that you may end up with a mountain of claims that haven’t been paid. “When we go in and start working with a new practice, we see the same problem over and over again that causes practices to fall behind in their A/R, and that’s claims follow-up,” says Kelli Bryant, administrator with JKK Medical Billing Services, LLC in Lincoln, Neb. “Claims are rejected or denied, but no one appeals,” she says. “The claims sit in a pile and no one addresses them. The claims may even be sitting in the clearinghouse rejected.”

Set a reminder: Try placing an event reminder on your Outlook or Web calendar every week that reminds you to check all accounts receivable for the past 30 days. Print a report, and go online or call to check claim statuses.

Start With Clerical Issues, Follow Through With Aging Reports

You can improve A/R with steps that start at your practice and go all the way through the billing process, advises Laurie Troemel, CPC, CPMA, operations director with Medical Practice Management Services. She reminds practices to verify eligibility and patient demographics to ensure you have no errors — either clerical or via other issues — in your files regarding the patient’s name, insurance number, address or other problems. You should also verify benefits and collect copays upfront, Troemel says.

Your next step is to electronically submit clean claims within one to two days of services being rendered, she advises. Then, “request direct deposit (EFT) of payments and electronic remittances (ERA) for faster receipt of payments and payment posting. Denials should be worked immediately after posting the remittance.” After that, you’ll develop A/R aging reports to quickly identify potential problems with specific payers.”

Know When to Write Off Patient Balances

In some cases, practices may find that they have patient balances sitting around for months without collecting payment on them. When this happens, you have a few options, one of which is to write off the balance. But knowing when that’s the right move can be tricky.

“Practices should have a universal protocol for this situation so they always follow the same rules for every patient,” Bryant advises. “Writing off balances should be a last resort, but every office has a different policy on this, depending on the size and the relationship with patients — but you have to have some policy. Follow your guidelines with every single patient.”

Some questions you may want to ask yourself when considering a write-offs policy include whether the patient balance is less than the cost of printing and mailing a statement, Troemel advises. Also, ask yourself whether your collection agency has a minimum referred balance, whether the balance is definitely uncollectable, and if the patient is indigent or a hardship case. In addition, she says, investigate whether writing off balances that have been processed to patient responsibility violates any payer contracts.

Reprinted with permission from The Coding Institute

Credentialing and Provider Enrollment: The Fabric to the Success of your Practice

Best practices to help get your providers set up for reimbursement success.

1.Credentialing: What does it mean?

  • Credentialing is a systematic process of obtaining and verifying a health care provider’s professional qualifications.
  • The qualifications that are reviewed and verified include, but not limited to, the following: academic background, relevant training, licensure, board certification, work history, malpractice history.
  • Insurance credentialing is the process of becoming affiliated with insurance companies to ensure health care providers can accept third party reimbursement.
  • Before a provider can become contracted with a health plan/insurer, credentialing is required. Credentialing provides liability protection for both the insurer and the insured.
  • Provider enrollment is the process of requesting participation in a health insurance network as a participating provider. The process involves requesting enrollment/contracting with a plan, completing the credentialing/enrollment application, submitting copies of supporting documents (licensure, insurance, board certification, etc.), and signing a contract.

2.Provider Enrollment: What is the process?

  • Provider enrollment is the process of requesting participation in a health insurance network as a participating provider. The process involves requesting enrollment/contracting with a plan, completing the credentialing/enrollment application, submitting copies of supporting documents, (licensure, insurance, board certification, etc.) and signing a contract.

3.Contracting: What is being contracted with a health plan?

  • A provider contract is where the provider agrees to the terms and conditions of the health plan in order to be accepted as an In-Network Provider.

4.Best Practices

  • Start Early- As soon as a provider commits to your practice, present them with a provider enrollment packet.
  • Attention to Detail- Once signed applications have been returned, be sure to review EVERY application for accuracy and completeness before it is sent to a payer. Clean and complete applications get processed faster.
  • Identify Payer Contacts- It’s important to identify a “go to” person for each health plan. This is vital as it allows for open communication and status updates on the applications.
  • Follow Up- Follow up with the health plan to confirm receipt of application and that they have all documentation needed within 7 days. Once receipt of application is verified, continue to routinely check on the status of the application to ensure enrollment process is moving forward and to confirm that no additional information is needed.
  • Verification- Verify all information listed on the health plan approval letters/emails is correct. Mistakes made in the data entry/credentialing process can affect claims processing.
  • Communication- Provide status updates to the Office Manager/Billing Department. Communication and attention to detail are vital in getting providers started as quickly as possible. It is important to have credentialing professionals who understand the different ins and outs for each insurance company so important details aren’t missed.

Provider credentialing/enrollment/contracting is a critically important and complex piece of your practice. It is the fabric of your revenue cycle success.