All Entries in the "Provider posts" Category

Collecting ED co-pays

I am the supervisor of a patient access department that also includes ED triage. I am looking for information on collecting ED Copays.

Does anyone have helpful information or programs that they have put together? I would appreciate any feedback.

Thank you
Lori Weber

Sample survey to patients

I am looking for a sample survey to give to patients. I need feedback to have continuous improvement.

Is anyone willing to share the survey tool they are using?

Carole L. Sraver
Director, Patient Access
Washington Adventist Hospital

Centralized scheduling/online fax orders

I would like to network with hospitals that have Centralized Scheduling and Online Fax orders.

Sabine McNair
Director of Patient Financial Services
Hopkins County Memorial Hospital

National Appeal Process denial

Does anyone have a success story on getting a denial overturned by using the National Appeal Process after all levels of appeals for the insurance company have failed? Also, can someone provide that address?

Rosemary R. McLain, RN
Clinical Nurse Auditor
Providence Hospital

EMTALA in Georgia

We know the EMTALA guidelines for the ER log book. I’m looking for the State of Georgia guidelines. Can anyone help me?

Marianne Addison
Patient Access Supervisor
BJC Medical Center
Commerce, GA

Questions for new OB unit

The hospital that I work at will be opening an OB unit this fall. I am trying to compile a list of questions because many of the managers here do not have experience with labor & delivery.

Does anyone have a list of important questions to ask or know where I can find one? (I’m thinking things like who handles the birth certificates, how are charges billed, etc.)

I’d also like to know if anyone has suggestions about processes that have worked well for them.

Brianna Walter

Pre-registration supervisor

Baltimore Washington Medical Center

Raise for passing CHAM

I recently took and passed the CHAM exam. We are now in the process of deciding what type of raise I will receive for this certification. Do any of you have a $$ amount or percentage increase that employees will receive if they pass the CHAA or CHAM? My employees who have passed the CHAA currently receive a $1 per-hour increase.

Any help will be greatly appreciated.

Beth Hunley, CHAM
Jay County Hospital
Portland, IN
Patient Registration Manager

Standing order labs

How do your facilities handle registration of “standing order labs”? I am looking for a process that will streamline the patients rather than having to stop at registration each time.

Liz Kucharczyk
ER Registration Supervisor
Hilton Head Hospital
Hilton Head, SC

Billing post-denials

A patient came into the office and gave us Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield insurance card, so we billed that insurance. Blue Cross denied stating that the patient wasn’t eligible then we billed the patient. The patient comes back after a year later and says, “Oh, by the way I had Cigna insurance.”

So, we bill Cigna insurance, and we get denials stating that it is past timely filing, which we knew would happen.

My question: Is it legal to bill the patient after receiving these denials from Cigna and make them responsible for paying us services rendered? Or, is there a law that forbids us from doing so?

Danielle Bryant

Medical biller

Newington Internal Medicine Primary Care, LLP

Newington, CT

Bad debt in a shifting economy

As more Americans become unemployed and potentially also become uninsured or underinsured, a new challenge is being added to the patient financial counselor’s responsibilities.

Add to this the continued increase in high deductible health plans, and providers are starting to see increases in the self pay dollars owed for services.

We are also seeing software tools being used which provide a propensity to pay score for self pay patients or patients with a self pay balance.

My question is this — what impacts on bad debts are you seeing both because of the shifting economy and because of the new technology being deployed?

Editor’s note: This post was provided by Sandra J. Wolfskill, FHFMA, president of Wolfskill & Associates, Inc., in Chardon, OH.