Payment Cycle

The revenue cycle management process starts even before the patient visits a physician’s office or a clinic or hospital and ends when full reimbursement is realized.

The scope for improvements in the revenue cycle management process has been accentuated in the recent times due to changes in the health care industry and the health policies set up by the government.

Better revenue cycle management has become a necessity and can affect the revenue and financial outcomes of physicians and health care providers more than it has done in the past. This is due to the fact that the number of insured is rising dramatically and also because of the changes in the way health care is delivered and the methods of reimbursements under the health reforms. Here are some simple ways to improve the revenue cycle management process and ensure that you, as a provider, optimally utilize the opportunities for collecting revenues from payers.

Point-of-service (POS) cash collections is an integral part of revenue cycle and such collections
can make a huge difference in the long run. One of the best ways to manage such collections is to obtain patient insurance verification from the payers. Most insurance companies provide this information to physicians in order to ensure that payment arrangements can be made even before the treatment begins and also to make sure that the patient understands his or her financial obligations accurately. Collecting the co-pay or coinsurance from the patient becomes important considering that insurance companies tend to deny a huge number of claims just due to mistakes or errors. Moreover, such collection is especially important if the patient has a high-deductible insurance plan.