The collection of money and dues is a tricky and challenging element in the operations of the entire healthcare industry and the dental care sector is no different either.
Any dental practice on completion of services and procedures expects to get reimbursed from the insurance company and the patient on a case-to-case basis.
As easy as it might seem, navigating the complex process of billing and collection from both patients and insurance companies is a steep task. A few ways to ease the task are as below:
Sometimes, a dental practice might avoid making collection calls, sending emails for reminders, or even using the services of a collection agency for outstanding payments.
A practice intends to preserve their relationship and not drive them away. A persistent follow-up might hurt the relationship and make the patient look for another practice.
On the other hand, some practices do not have adequate manpower to focus on billing and collection. This could indicate that many practices might send their billing statements and reminders much after due dates.
The tasks for collections, handled by the dental team or outsourced to professionals are highly effective when executed promptly while keeping die dates in mind.
A dental practice must make it a routine to define wait times based on the duration of the bill for sending reminder emails or making reminder calls. Quite a few practices wait for more than six months before seeking the services of a collection agency. At this juncture, chances of a full recovery are not very bright.
The dental revenue cycle is continuous and a practice must be always on top of things to stay profitable and keep a close check on the outstanding amounts of patients.
When a practice is on top of your dental revenue cycle because of a well-trained and responsive team coupled with the usage of a popular dental billing software, the billing department is prompt, claims are submitted on time and claim denials are handled effectively.
Based on the number of patient visits and the team strength, it can make imminent sense for a practice to outsource the function of billing and collection.
An in-house dental team might not be able to handle the pressures and delegation can be a solution. Outsourcing the task of billing and collection also enables the team to focus on core areas of treatment and service.
Handing over billing and collection to professionals who have mastery of the process and long-standing experience can help maximize the dental revenue cycle.
The initial step before any service is rendered is to request a patient to share details of their dental insurance policies. A lot of vital information can be made available to the practice when insurance details are immediately shared. In addition to what the coverage does or doesn’t include, one will have access to
This helps to bill a patient accurately for the service and procedures rendered as well as boost the percentage of insurance payments. It also helps the practice to inadvertently treat a patient who does not have active or adequate coverage.
The client profile of a practice can be varied and hence it must offer a multitude of payment options such as cash, online transfers, and cards. This encourages patients to make payments on the spot while the practice its bills cleared immediately after the services have been provided.
A practice can also deliberate on providing patients with third-party financing as this can help patients avail of expensive treatments not covered in the plan. It also helps the practice to avoid chasing patients for dues.
Technology can be effectively leveraged to lower outstanding dues by using digital dental and billing software. This can provide a seamless payment experience for the patient.
A patient can log into the account and pay the amount due anytime and from anywhere. This also enables the practice to save effort and time and spare the job of creating and sending statements. In addition to just billing, one can also send automatic payment reminders to patients.
Billing and collection can be a source of frustration for a dental practice if not handled well. Following some tips shared above, a practice can increase profitability by effectively lowering the outstanding amounts while also streamlining operations.
