Your Medical Practice's Healthy Cash Flow

There is ample evidence in science that a positive flow of energy will provide positive results.

How many stories have there been of so-called "medical miracles" of healing?

Usually, the set-up for the drama occurs when the clinician informs the patient that they'll never walk/talk/play the piano again, followed by a stubborn refusal by the patient to accept this "inevitability."

What comes next is a heart-warming conclusion where the patient bucked the odds, walked again, kicked cancer's ass and put it into remission, fill in the blank.

The power of positive thought works wonders in medicine, and guess what?

It also works wonders in business!

With this in mind, this week's blog is coming to you from a voice of success, rather than the typical "solution to your problem" approach.?

Let's take it away...

You've Got Cash!

How did it happen?? Let's look at some of the methods you employed to get to this enviable position:

Timely Claims Submissions

You are already aware that healthcare practices often struggle to submit timely claims for reasons such as hiring and nurturing their billing staff, or outside billing.

You got on top of this by addressing the knowledge gap in coding regulations as well as staying up on documentation.

It's clear to you through results that you know faster and more frequent claim submissions improve your cash flow.

Streamlining and Automating Eligibility

Addressing the problem that lack of coverage or eligibility is the most common reason for claim denials ahead of the event has paid dividends in increased cash flow for your practice.

There is nothing I love more as a patient than to be able to sign onto a secure portal and provide the necessary "paperwork" days ahead of the visit.? This creates a core efficiency of patient care at the face-to-face level, as well as confidence in your practice.

You have practice management software that directly integrates with billing software. This integration ensures patients are covered for the services rendered, and provides eligibility verification as well.

If the patients are not eligible for the services they want to opt for, providers can inform them about the same before it becomes a problem.

Then they can also give alternate payment options, or even other treatments and instill a confident feeling of true empathy for the patient.

Denial Management

It happens to us all, of course, but your efforts to identify denial trends ensure claims get through on the first attempt with better frequency.

Still, you can count on about one in five claims to hit a denial speed bump.? This is likely the largest potential cash hemorrhage in your business.

Your efforts at reducing coding or documentation errors has helped, and so can regular staff review of common denial trends to become more consciously aware of them.

Automated claim scrubbers can also help to detect bad inputs, and optimize denials.

Patient Responsibility Payments

Once all forms of insurance coordination are exhausted, the patient must be handled gently but expeditiously to ensure the remainder of coinsurance, or patient responsibility is remitted.

This assumes that the remainder is unknown at the time of service.

Here is where you shine.?

You have already instituted up-front collection of co-pays, which is pretty standard, but you have also taken advantage of software as a service to accurately predict coinsurance and collect responsibility payments in advance.?

Additionally, you have enabled staff to be fully transparent with the patients in your care, and advised them upfront regarding fully covered, partially covered, and non-covered services in advance.?

Handled correctly, this builds trust and confidence in the provider and the staff while also resulting in the obvious benefit to you of increased timely cash flow.?

Well done!

NEVER Make it Hard for People to Give You Money

Kudos for figuring out that you need to offer multiple payment options to patients. Cash flow optimization depends on this.

The payment portal on your practice's website is the most important page.? You have ensured that it's not a nightmare for people to navigate.

You gather email and mobile numbers for reminders, ideally during the pre-visit online intake process.

And of course you follow up with payment reminders, which improves payment collection chances as well.

Remember to Celebrate Your Wins

You figured out all of what we’ve discussed here, and the results are clear: cash flow is no longer the issue for you it used to be.

Be sure to sit with this for a couple of moments, and congratulate yourself on doing something most people can’t.

This is a truly big deal.? You help people, and are also creating not only jobs for others but wealth for yourself and your family.?

Have you ever wanted to discuss an even more proactive approach to the business element of your practice??

Yes? So, have you ever thought about how having a non-equity financial partner guiding your practice can increase your wealth, reduce your taxes, and provide the peace of mind that will allow you to put 110% of yourself into your patient care goals?

We would like to talk to you about it.

We are accepting two new business advisory clients in the month of August.? It’s not too early to talk about it right now.?

Use the link I’m providing below now to choose the time to talk that is most convenient for you.

Imagine having a financial coach and compliance expert by your side, so that you can focus your professional clinical time where it belongs: on patient care.

Does that sound good?

Then reach out to me, and let’s talk: Free Profit & Cash Flow Analysis