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Table of Contents
General Collection
Principless
In order to get paid for
your services there are several basic principles you
must understand.
-
No one is
expecting services for free. Some people
with insurance may think there insurance plan
covers everything (typically it doesn't) but in
general most know there will be some associated
costs.
-
You can't expect to get
paid unless you present a bill. Just like
when you go to a restaurant, they present you
with a menu and after finishing they present you
with a bill. So to your services should be if
you want to have a healthy cash flow.
-
The collection
process begins at the time of initial contact.
Don't be afraid of talking about money. No
one is expecting to get treatment for free. In
fact, one reason patients will not folllow
through with their medical care is due to
financial ambiguity.
-
You cannot be the one
collecting monies for your services. Hiring
a very confident, personable and reliable front
office/receptionist will be one of the most
important decisions you make. Pay that person
well.
-
Accept credit cards.
If you want to have good cash flow you must
accept
credit cards.
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How to Make First Contact
Make a good first impression and let them know you
care more about their problem rather than their
insurance.
Use the
First Contact and Payment Verification Form to
do this right.
(optional) Use a credit
card to reserve an appointment slot. If they no-show
or cancel with a less than 24-hour advance notice a
fee will be charged. Recommend $10-20.
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Collecting at the Time of Service
1) When the patient arrives for their initial visit
finish gathering any information that was not
collected over the phone. These items will be
important should the account ever become delinquent
and you want to collect your money.
-
An emergency
contact. Contrary to popular belief this
item isn't needed for the serious medical
emergencies. You call 911 for that. This item
will help you or the collection company "track
them down".
-
Their social
security number. Some will not feel
comfortable giving that over the phone. This
item will be needed should the account go to
collections.
-
A copy of their
drivers license. Once again you'll need it
should it be sent to collections.
2) Then present them with the following forms:
If you have a website
make these forms available for download so they can
complete prior to their initial appointment.
3) After every visit
you should present a bill or what we call a
service fee slip.
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Collecting Copays
One
of the most common questions you'll get from
patients whose plans include a copay is, "Can you
waive it for me?" It may happen so commonly that it
becomes a nuisance.
To
help deal with this issue and educate people of the
law use this sign made exclusively for IndeFree
members. 1)
Unlawful Waiver... and 2)
Copays are Due...
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Collecting Deductibles
There are several ways to collect deductibles from
patients. Once again, you are required by law to
make a "good willed effort" to collect.
Something you should know is if the patient has a
deductible that's a part of their plan and you bill
the insurance company, they will withhold payment to
you and apply it toward the deductible amount until
it is met, which leaves the burden of collecting
that amount from the patient.
Most
practices wait til the patient's insurance plan is
billed and EOB received prior to billing the patient
their portion. The only problem is 30-60 days may
pass before you even receive an EOB (explanation of
benefits) from the insurance plan billed and by then
the patient's portion may have accumulated to
significant amounts (ie. $200 to $500). Make
sure to avoid this by presenting them a
bill
at the end of each visit collecting their
portions due. It's easier to collect $10-20 dollars
at each treatment rather than $300 dollars all at
once later.
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Delinquent Accounts: How to
Avoid Them
Follow all the steps above as well as use a
payment extension form if the patient ever
replies, "I forgot my wallet" etc...
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Delinquent Accounts: How to
Handle Them
First of all, do not make it easy for patients
to do the wrong thing! If you regularly
write-off bad debt without a "good-willed
effort" to collect you are breaking insurance
fraud laws let alone making it easy for people
to not pay their debts which cause them to not
be able to sleep at night.
1. Have a staff member call the patient on
the phone first and get payment via credit
card. This will usually be successful.
2. If that doesn't work you should send a
collection letter allowing them to pay
by credit card by phone, internet, or by
sending a check. Make sure to assign a
deadline and inform them of the negative
consequences should they fail to resolve the
debt.
3. Send to collections. Use a
flat rate collection service.
4. If that doesn't work than send to
collections.
I spent over $30,000 on another
practice management seminar and
I wish I met James before I made that $30,000 mistake!
