When you peel back the layers of a robust medical revenue cycle, you'll undoubtedly find charge capture at its core. Charge capture is the bridge that links patient care to billing, translating the medical services provided into billable claims. Consider a physician performing a complex surgical procedure; without an efficient charge capture system in place, this high-value service might not be billed quickly or correctly, leading to substantial revenue leakage.
Qualities of a Good Charge Capture Solution
An effective charge capture solution diligently ensures that every billable charge is captured, correctly coded, and billed while making a physician’s life easier. Here are a few qualities to look for in an effective charge capture solution:
- Ease-of-use: The solution should simplify the charge capture process, reducing the administrative burden on your healthcare team. It should make it easier for healthcare providers to enter charges than their previous process.
- Compliance: In the ever-evolving landscape of healthcare regulations, a good charge capture solution should always be up-to-date with the newest coding and billing regulations, helping a practice stay compliant and avoid penalties.
- Integration: The solution should seamlessly integrate with your existing EMR and billing systems, facilitating a smooth flow of information and reducing the chances of errors in billing and patient care.
The Influence of Charge Capture on the Overall Revenue Cycle
Accurate charge capture can significantly impact your overall revenue cycle in a positive way. As the engine driving your financial vehicle, the quicker charges are captured by the providers and submitted to the billing team, the sooner the practice will see revenue from rendered services. When providers attend to patients across multiple hospitals, it's challenging to efficiently track patient interactions and recall the specific services rendered, especially without a modern charge capture solution.
In pMD’s many years working directly with practices, we have seen providers resort to all types of elaborate charge capture methods, such as setting up a lockbox to drop in charges at the end of the week or hiring additional staff to fax charges to a central office. Methods such as these that rely on manual work often result in missed charges and charge lag. The best way to tackle these inefficiencies is by finding a charge capture solution that uses technology in ways that minimizes the steps involved in capturing a charge on a patient and sending it to the billing team, ideally all in a single tap.
By choosing a charge capture solution that combines efficiency, compliance, and seamless integration, healthcare providers can optimize their revenue cycle, minimize revenue leakage, and strengthen their financial health. An effective charge capture solution will gain back extra time for providers to use on patient care or to spend with family.
How pMD® Can Help
Here at pMD®, our mission is to streamline and optimize as many areas of the patient care episode and the revenue cycle as possible. Through our advanced, charge capture and revenue cycle solutions, we’re able to help practices consolidate vendors, reduce costs, streamline workflows, improve patient care and satisfaction, and collect your maximum reimbursement quicker.
Not sure what a vendor could do to improve your behavioral health billing? Contact pMD® for a no-commitment financial impact analysis by our team of healthcare RCM experts free of charge!
To find out more about pMD's suite of products, which includes our charge capture and MIPS registry, billing services, telehealth, and secure communication software and services, please contact pMD.
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