Medicare Compliance & Reimbursement

Be proactive -- not reactive -- to A/R changes. With Medicare payment changes up in the air every 30 days, medical practices are putting more pressure than ever on their billing staffs to collect every cent available to them. But practices should switch their focus from being reactive to Medicare changes -- instead should become proactive by creating efficient billing procedures. Follow these three tips to make sure your billers are tracking the right numbers. 1. Review financial measurements. You may think your accounts receivable (A/R) department is running at 100 percent efficiency, but when is the last time you reviewed the processes? When Medicare pay appears poised to drop, practices try to immediately focus on improving their A/R, but this should be an ongoing goal, says David J. Zetter, PHR, CHCC, CHCO, CPC, CPCH, PCS, FCS, CHBC with Zetter Healthcare Management Consultants. "There are always situations like these that bring about [...]