Claim denials can originate at patient registration as well as in the middle of the revenue cycle.
With this in mind, hospitals should educate physicians and the coding team on documentation issues that can result in denials, said Tony Rinkenberger, revenue cycle director at Ridgeview Medical Center in Waconia, Minn.
He also recommended bringing consumers into the coding process through price transparency tools since patients may need to know medical terminology or specific codes to look at price estimates.
"Look at the tools you have now that are payer-centric and make them more consumer-centric," said Mr. Rinkenberger.
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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