Physicians Practice® spoke with Kristina Hutson, a product line developer at Availity, about surprise billing events in independent healthcare practices and what owners and administrators can do to reduce the likelihood of their occurrence.
10 ways to strengthen your strategic plan
A strategic plan should be a living and breathing document. Here are 10 ways to ensure your plan is a road map to success.
Conquer the 3 C’s to secure financing
Consider how you appear to a bank by reviewing your cash, credit, and character before applying for a loan.
The way medicine should be practiced
One independent practice has improved patient outcomes, employee efficiency, and practice revenue by implementing a chronic care management program.
Cash cushions
Every penny counts.
Clean up the A/R before putting the practice on the market
How to develop an accounts receivable work plan in three steps
Grow your practice with patient relationship management software
Stay independent and profitable through the use of technology.
Tax season is over! Now what do I do with all of this paperwork?
Sorting your paperwork into four categories will ensure that whatever you need will be readily and easily accessible.
HHS changes penalty limits for HIPAA and HITECH violations
The government is lowering its civil monetary penalties under the HITECH Act.
The leading causes of denials and how to prevent them
Denials are a painful - but preventable - financial drain on practices.
How to renegotiate payer contracts
Don’t settle for a bad deal. Boost your profits by renegotiating your payer contracts.
7 ways to make denied claims easier
Don’t take ‘no’ for an answer: promptly and properly resubmitting claims is crucial to your bottom line.
5 keys to collecting patient responsibility upfront
Ensure your practice’s long-term health by educating patients about their financial responsibility and staff on how to improve medical billing and collections.
What banks need to know about your medical practice
Before a bank issues you a loan, it will review your financial statements, your corporate structure, and how the loan will be used to make sure you’re a sound investment.
Avoid false economies that undermine your practice business
Efforts to save money may even weaken the business-and, sometimes, those weakening effects can be very hard to spot.
When to consider succession planning
Take time to reassess your personal and professional priorities as well as long-term goals for your practice, then adjust your workload as needed.
Determine your break-even point
Knowing your break-even point will help you plan for the future.
Asset protection: What is your target value?
Consider the following types of assets when determining your own defensive needs and exactly what you have to lose if you don’t act.
A new way to retire
For many, retirement will be a long process of gradually winding down work hours and responsibilities rather than a firm date.
Get paid for procedures insurance won’t cover
Six tips that can help physicians collect on services not covered by third parties.
How to talk with patients about billing
If you let patients know from the start what you expect from them, you’re far more likely to get the money you’re asking for.
Don’t wait to discuss your billing and collection policies
Improve your medical collections by communicating your policies up front.
What to consider before selling your practice to a private equity firm
As the healthcare landscape continues to evolve, so do funding opportunities.
Managing cultures during medical practice mergers
A merger or acquisition may look perfect on paper, but it’s the people who ultimately guarantee its success - or failure.
Current threats to physician assets
Current events once again illustrate the wide range of legal and physical threats to physicians' assets.
Managing the risks of spring
Successful doctors face a wide variety of risks outside their practice walls. These are some common recurring seasonal legal and financial risks you can manage before spring break.
Minimizing surprises at tax filing time
This year more than ever, a sound financial move would be to sort through the new tax changes carefully to determine exactly how they will impact you and identify smart moves for 2019 and beyond.
4 steps to a successful post-merger integration process
Once the deal is signed on the dotted line, it’s make or break time for merging two medical practices. Here’s how to ensure the acquisition doesn’t fall apart.
The reality of virtual check-in coding
Medicare’s new G2012 code for virtual check-ins may lead to cost savings. It could also cost patients money and potentially cost providers in patient satisfaction.
Mitigating risk on outpatient bundled payment contracts
Three ways medical practices can manage opportunities for bundled episodes of care.
Best practices for secure payment processing
Accepting payment via credit card is one way to improve patient collections. But medical practices must take precautions to ensure that their patients’ personal information remains protected.
