Accounts receivable management, also known as or A/R management,is a very popular term in any business. “Accounts Receivable” is a phrase thatis basically used to denote the collection of debt from the debtor.
While there are many businesses which themselves figure out and experiment with different ways to acquire their debts, these ways often tend to be a bit of an inconvenience and may lead to the ruin of the business-client relationship. This is why it is suggested to opt for a debt collection agency.
In this blog, we shall be talking about accounts receivable management by a healthcare provider. While it sounds quite simple to acquire the debts from the patients, it may not be so. Many problems may arise that may delay the payments on their behalf leading to the slowdown of cash flow. The best collection agency services provide state-of-the-art means to acquire the debts without ruining the relationship between the healthcare provider and its clients i.e.patients.
Strategies of accounts receivable management by a healthcare provider
Here are 2 fundamental strategies:
Targeted Accounts-Receivable reduction
Targeted A/R reduction basically means to focus on past due accounts of the patients i.e. the account holder. This is done through identifying and confirming the debt, the root causes, and the likelihood of the account holder to pay the debt.
All this is to maintain its relationship with the account holder which is crucial for the healthcare provider’s reputation. Reducing the debts slowly and without haste will eventually bring back the proper cash flow. Hurrying is never an option.
While most hospitals take care of this manually, hiring a debt collection agency is a much better and effective option.
This is because such an agency makes use of the latest technology and software to identify such accounts and its details. They have a professional team that is dedicated to maintaining a relationship with the patient while bringing back your initial better cashflow.
Denials Management
Many times it may happen that an insurance company may deny paying for the medical services provided to a patient. This can be a great inconvenience. However, before taking any step, it should be made sure that the managed care contract is reflecting the medical bill. Only after verifying this can the case be taken further ahead. Also, in many cases, the patient is helpless.
And it is only natural that the insurance company and not the patient or his or her family is pulled into the situation. So, in this case, too instead of taking steps itself, the healthcare should opt for an agency that provides debt collection service.
A debt collection agency has better knowledge of all the proceedings involved in cases like this and makes sure that the correct steps are taken in accordance with the federal and state law to recover the payments.
Additional
There are many debt collection service providers that handle national as well as international accounts receivable. So, if your patient is from another country and the insurance company of that country is denying payment claims, these agencies will help you in recovering your debts easily. This would not have been possible otherwise and would have led to an unpleasant situation.
The 2 above-mentioned strategies show why hiring a debt collection agency is a much better option for accounts receivable management. Being able to recover debts as soon as possible does not make for the best collection agency.
What makes one the best is being able to do so without ruining the relationship between the healthcare provider and the patient. This not only brings back regular cash flow but also helps the healthcare provider gain better trust and bond better with its patients.