5 Tips for Your Private Practice in 2018
Happy New Year! Even with a cash pay private practice it can be hard to keep up with the changing healthcare landscape. Here are 5 tips for keeping your practice running smoothly in 2018.
1. Remind Your Patients to Check their 2018 Health Benefits
For many people, with the new year comes new health insurance. Support your patients by reminding them to check on any changes to their plan. It can be difficult to understand how a new insurance plan will stack up. In cases where someone with a PPO suddenly finds themselves with an EPO they can lose their out-of-network benefits altogether.
For patients with questions, encourage them to sign-up for a free Better account. They can ask us questions about their new policy by emailing support@getbetter.co
2. Keep Up to Date with Coding Changes
Make sure the ICD-10 and CPT codes you are using are current and accurate. October 1, 2017, brought thousands of coding changes that affected mental health billing, especially in the area of substance abuse. On January 1st, CMS (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services) also released CPT code updates including new codes for tele-health. You can always find the complete lists of current codes on their website.
We know the constant changes to our coding system are a lot to keep up with. However, it can cost your patients a lot of money if their superbills include non-billable codes. Reach out to us anytime you have coding questions at providers@getbetter.co. We will help you stay up to date!
3. Respond to Requests for Information From Insurers
If you’ve ever received a notice from an insurer that your patient’s claim will not be paid unless you complete paperwork or send in a W9, you know what we are talking about. More and more insurance companies are requiring that even those healthcare providers who do not accept insurance verify their practice information before they will pay their member’s claims.
We know this is a huge headache but your patients could be losing out on a lot of money because of a single form. Complying with these requests for information does not mean you are forming a contractual relationship with the insurer or agreeing to be in-network. It simply lists you as an out-of-network provider in the insurer’s computer system so claims can be paid. If you have questions, we are happy to guide you through the process free of charge. Reach out at providers@getbetter.co
4. Support Patients Who Now Need Proof of Payment
HealthNet and a handful of other insurance companies now require proof of payment before they will pay member claims. Many of these changes occurred in late 2017. An invoice marked as paid from your practice is no longer enough!
HealthNet and others are requiring cancelled checks, bank statements, credit card receipts, or credit card statements before they will pay the claim. This big hassle is catching many people by surprise and costing them a lot of money. Below is the fine print from the HealthNet claim form:
We recommend helping your patients get ahead of this by making them aware of the changes. At Better, we simplify the hassle by making it a snap to submit additional proof of payment in cases where it is required.
5. Upgrade Your Practice Records
We know it can be a huge time sink when patients ask you to help them figure out why their claims have been denied by their insurance. To make sure your superbills have all of the information needed by insurance, we recommend using a standard template or practice management system. The standard CMS 1500 is a great free template. We also highly recommend Simple Practice for managing your business and creating easy to use superbills. It is our team’s favorite template. You can get a free trial and extra discount here if you’d like to see if Simple Practice is helpful for you.
If you have questions about creating superbills we are always here to help at providers@getbetter.co
Do you need Better brochures for your practice? Request them online or get in touch with your questions at providers@getbetter.co
