Finance Director's Dialogue

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

2:00 PM

Discussion Questions

Follow up from Conference Sessions/ Questions?

What questions do you have about reporting and payment on both PPS and/or State Safety Net?

Is anyone billing telehealth? Getting paid (originating site)?

~Lifespan is getting paid by medicare and only payor paying them now

Is there a need for training on CHC coding (ICD-10)?

~Yes

~Brown and Associates - Coding training

~October 2013 - effective date

~higher level understanding from a FD perspective, organize roles and processes

~Need one for the billing managers which is in depth Coding for ICD 10

~NACHC is doing a whole webinar series on Billing.

~PMG is also working on billing and coding training

If a financial expert came to your center to offer you one on one support, what would be your top 2 needs?

Policy and procedures for bad credit write-off?

~Best way is to have a process when they age out at some level you write them off.

~Mike has some ideas around policies and procedures

How the reporting and payment process is working on PPS and Safety Net?

~Getting paid timely about 6-8 weeks after sending the invoice.

~Lifespan will be including Behavioral health

~Linda having problems with people receiving reports

~What is the best way? Fax or email is best way

~email address: /Christi will check into the best email addresses to email the reports to.

TA NEEDS:

Richard: IT Background, needs Financial assistance, learning how to do the quarterly reports, Safety Net Report, PPS Report, Agreement with Michael Holton to offer one on one finance support with reports

Linda: Problems with the 272 reports for practice management or PMS draw downs? Since they changed them through the PMS system, 2 pages instead of 1 and it is confusing. It is a FFR, 2 parts, 1 is quarterly and other annual report. FFR Annual report replaces the FSR.

~How do CHCs deal with collecting from patients that owe a balance with the economy and the mission at the CHCs where do you draw the line with ability and willingness? Primary Care and Hope clinic and they have a social worker who they can meet with to assess their ability to pay. There is a process in place to assess the resources that they have and see what they are able to do based on the needs of the patient. Lifespan has a patient accounts person designated and they handle the evaluation of resources and set up payments plans for struggling patients.

Amber: building a new building and some are second guessing about whether to pursue, the good and bad about building a new clinic.

Jennifer: Related to Amber's question, plans to renovate and expansion, and forecasting revenue. Waiting on confirmation of grant funding. What information to look at and trusting the data so that it is reliable. Since the implementation of both EPM and Electronic Health Records, help going through the process to make sure they are doing it correctly. Setting provider templates to promote productivity. Contact Mike to discuss in more detail about increasing productivity with E H R and EPM.

Is anyone outsourcing your billing? Any companies you would suggest?

~PMG was recommended

Volume was not big enough for PMG

~Group from Jackson, Linda will send to Shane.