An effective billing process is what allows a medical practice to be profitable. If you’re providing great care but aren’t properly collecting, you’ll have a hard time keeping your practice afloat. If you suspect there may be areas where you’re missing out on revenue, follow these tips to identify and correct them.

When the patient checks in for their appointment, make sure you have all their information correct in your system. Verify their insurance, since individuals may change plans or companies often with new jobs or other life developments. If you have the wrong insurance on file, it’ll just cost your staff more time and money to get it straightened out later. Verify their address, phone number, and email address if needed too, so you can avoid sending billing information and statements to the wrong place.

For new patients, consider offering a copy of your intake forms online or sending them beforehand via email. That way, they can fill them out at their own pace at home, making it more likely that they’ll include all the necessary information and that it will be free from mistakes. When they turn in their forms, ensure your staff looks them over to confirm that there’s no missing or incomplete information. Any such errors could delay billing or related communication.

Whenever possible, collect what the patient owes while they’re present in your office. Any revenue you can gather from them today is worth more than what they may (or may not) pay you online or via mail tomorrow.

If the patient is unable to pay their entire bill in full that day, make it easy for them to complete any remaining payments in the future. Accepting various payment methods (like credit cards), offering the option to pay online through a secure patient portal, and sending statements that are simple to read and understand are three ways to improve the collections process of your medical practice.

Submitting correct insurance claims the first time is one of the best ways to increase medical practice revenue. Although you should pursue denied claims whenever possible, it’s always easier to simply reduce their frequency if you can.

First, do an audit to see where your system is inefficient so you know where to begin. Watch out for coding errors, and make sure your staff is up-to-date on any news on that topic. Make a plan to correct any issues you come across, and make sure your employees are properly trained on the entire procedure and its details.

At InnovateU, we have years of expertise in medical billing and coding, practice management and consulting, and all other aspects of medical practice administration. If you’re struggling to make the billing process of your medical office more efficient, we can assist you! Reach out today to learn more about how we can help bring you closer to medicine by streamlining your admin procedures.