Claims Processing

State-of-the-art revenue cycle technologies can not only speed up the claims submission and payment process, but also make the lives of business office staff much easier. Here are 4 key technologies that help providers collect what they're owed.

Medians for U.S. not-for-profit healthcare systems remained steady in 2012, but analysts expect a weakening in ratios due to the pressures of healthcare reform.

As medical supply prices have steadily risen in recent years, many hospitals have turned to group purchasing organizations to buy in bulk and keep costs down, but group product purchasing also complicates the product supply trail, often leading to errors that prevent fulfillment, delivery and payment.

Several key trends are reshaping the business strategies of health insurers in advance of the Jan. 1 go-live date for many provisions of the Affordable Care Act.

The trend of providers owning health plans took a big step forward in New York last week when the state approved North Shore-LIJ Insurance Company's application for an insurance license.

Errors in manual claims processing are a big problem. While underpayments lead to complaints and rework, overpayments may go unnoticed and cost far more.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has announced that hospitals will see a slight increase in Medicare payments in 2014.

Medical claims denials are a hassle and can lead to financial difficulties and yet so many of them can be easily avoided.

Since providers must be able to pay rent and staff salaries if the transition to ICD-10 does not flow smoothly, experts advise having up to several months' cash reserves or access to cash to avoid potential headaches.

As healthcare delivery and reimbursement models transition to ensuring quality care versus quantity of care, some sectors of the healthcare industry will benefit more than others.