RCM tip of the day: Rise in self-pay patients requires full-functioning strategy

Self-pay collections is becoming increasingly important for hospitals, as they now receive more reimbursement from patients rather than commercial payers.

Brad Baldwin, vice president of extended business office services at financial consultant MediRevv: The recent unfortunate news of the ACA insurance plan premium hikes will have negative consequences for patients, hospitals and physicians. As the price of "better" insured plans become more expensive, consumers will choose what they can afford — plans with fewer benefits — once again shifting financial burden to the patient. Hospitals and physicians groups will ultimately get stuck holding the bag for self-pay collections. Having a full functioning self-pay strategy will continue to be top of mind for CFOs and revenue cycle leaders across the United States. Without patient-forward technology and processes and staff trained to implement and manage them, hospital's risk losing revenue by simply not being prepared to engage the patient in the easiest and most friendly manner.

To learn more about how to collect self-pay accounts, access this story from Becker's Hospital Review.

If you would like to share your RCM best practices, please email Kelly Gooch at kgooch@beckershealthcare.com to be featured in the "RCM tip of the day" series.

 

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