ENT Billing & Coding: How to Boost a Practice’s Collections

Many otolaryngology billing and coding departments are struggling to increase the payments that they receive from third-party payers, as well as from patients. Many of today’s patients are having difficulty paying their medical bills due to the recent rise in deductibles. For those who haven’t seen a physician in a while since the changes took effect, the cost can be much more than they were prepared to have to pay. Unfortunately, that means that medical practices need to be on top of Medicare reimbursement, insurance payers reimbursement and individual patient collections.

Because the patient is now responsible for a higher amount of money before the insurance kicks in, it is important to collect those funds as quickly as possible to avoid putting your revenue cycle at risk. ENT billing and coding must be extremely accurate and swift in order to ensure quick billing and payment is received. An annual fee schedule review, accounting audit and other tools should be used to ensure that your otolaryngology billing and coding department is staying on top of your accounts.

A study conducted in 2010 revealed that most physicians only collect 60 percent of patient co-pays each year. However, these co-pays make up as much a 20 percent of a doctor’s revenue. With co-pays and deductibles higher than ever before, it is essential that your practice or clinic stay on top of collections from patients.

What You Need to Do
The first thing that you should do is hire a professional consultant, such as MD Pro Solutions, to perform an analysis of your ENT billing and coding department to ensure that they are doing everything according to the latest regulations. The consultant will also give you some insight into the areas of your otolaryngology billing and coding department that need the most assistance, as well as offer advice on training, support and even temporary solutions for outsourcing your medical billing services while you make improvements in-house.

MD Pro Solutions can also assist with boosting performance with regard to insurance payers, Medicaid and Medicare reimbursement. A complete billing audit, as well as an annual fee schedule review, should be performed to make sure you are getting the most out of each visit as possible. With practices and clinics already losing 40 percent of patient co-pays each year, it is important that you aren’t losing any more revenue through ICD-10 coding errors or meaningful use requirements.

Top Tips for Collecting Patient Payments
There are ways to ensure that you collect as much money up-front as possible from your patients on every visit. ENT billing and coding must be up-to-date and accurate in order to receive Medicaid and Medicare reimbursement. Ensure that all of your otolaryngology billing and coding procedures and annual fee schedule review are current and accurate for best results.

Some of the best tips for practices who need to increase collections include:

• Train your staff to collect money from patients before they get into your office. Put signs up around the office that clearly state your cash up-front policy.
• Teach your reception staff to remind patients of monies that are due when they call to make an appointment or if staff calls to remind patients of upcoming appointments. Make sure they know that they need to pay the balance before they can be seen again and that any new amounts due must be paid as well.
• Make sure that your rates are clear. One reason why so many patients are behind on medical payments is because they are unaware of how much it will cost them to be seen and do not have the funds in their budget to pay for services. Before you perform any procedures, make sure your patients know how much they will cost so they can make informed decisions before they agree to your services.
• Update your ENT billing and coding software to ensure quick and accurate billing is performed. Always engage in an annual fee schedule review to make sure you aren’t losing money by not charging enough for services. Make sure staff is trained on how to properly use otolaryngology billing and coding software programs and provide regular updates and testing on coding to ensure accuracy.

Call MD Pro Solutions for a Consultation
If you are struggling with collections or need assistance with ENT billing and coding, contact MD Pro Solutions to receive a consultation with our team of professional consultants who all specialize in otolaryngology billing and coding services. Whether you need to make improvements to boost your Medicare reimbursement or if you need assistance making a departmental audit or annual fee schedule review, MD Pro Solutions can help. Give us a call at 508-946-1665 to get a FREE evaluation or to speak with our team.