If it is to clean up your old accounts receivable (A/R) and try to get them paid before writing them off, this plan can help you make your resolution a reality:
- Run an A/R aging report for all accounts over 120 days old (aged by date of service).
- Select top outstanding carriers by dollar amount.
- Research why claims have not been paid (e.g., missing information, claim never received, incorrect coding, etc.) and sort them by groups.
- Develop an action plan on resubmitting claims. The action plan should include:
- Dropping claims to paper;
- Resubmitting claims over a certain dollar amount directly to one person at the carrier’s office, preferably by certified mail;
- Resubmitting claims in batches, not individually; and
- Making sure that all errors are corrected and claims are stamped as resubmissions (this will prevent denials for duplicate claims).
- Run a report of past-due patient balances; letters can be sent out, but phone calls are most effective.
Results from this project should prove financially positive for your practice, and there will be a cleaner and easier A/R to work with in 2010.
