At dental practices, sometimes, discussions about efficiency center around clinical procedures or trying to see more patients. However, one area that can make or break your business is your revenue cycle management (RCM). If you are unable to collect payment efficiently, you won’t be able to keep the lights on—much less keep your staff happy and paid while enabling your business to thrive year after year.
No matter how long you’ve been in the dentistry business, everyone can improve and give their practice a boost in the right direction. Keep reading to learn about ways you can be more efficient in your revenue cycle management.
Confirm Insurance Benefit Eligibility
Especially if the patient is new to your practice, it pays to verify their benefits with the insurance company prior to their visit. When they set the appointment, gather the information you need: their name, birthdate, demographic information, and dental insurance group ID number and policy number. Not only can you work ahead of the appointment but if there’s an issue, you have time to resolve it before they even get in!
Double Check for Coding or Other Claim Errors
At first, giving your claims a review before submission may seem to waste time rather than save it, but the smallest error can delay payment and cost your practice much more time to correct it later once the claim has been denied. Instead of having to do rework, take a tiny bit of time to look through your claims for anything amiss prior to sending it in and be a little more proactive against denial.
Stay Updated on Payer Rules and Coding
Unfortunately, dental insurance companies can change their billing policies at any time in the calendar year. It’s up to your billing team to remain on top of these alterations and continue to be accurate in coding and submitting claims properly.
However, this task of monitoring so many different companies’ billing rules can feel like a whole separate full-time job! With thousands of codes and tons of insurance companies, your staff could burn out quickly. That’s where a service company that specifically focuses on dentistry can make all the difference. While you keep the emphasis on the patient in front of you, the dental billing service can stay updated to ensure a smooth payment process.
Offer Multiple Payment Options
These days, most patients would struggle if they have to pay the entire cost of treatment out-of-pocket all at one time, and more than one method of payment available can give them a sense of control and flexibility. If you have a payment process that is optimally automated, with clear invoices and patient payment letters, then this sometimes-awkward situation can run more smoothly.
Your priority should always be the patient at your dental practice, but by improving your RCM, you can ensure that your office can remain open for business and keep serving your community with confident smiles.
About Dental Support Specialties
Dental Support Specialties became remote administrative experts long before the idea of working from home became more common in the modern work environment. Our team of dental front desk experts keep abreast of policy changes, so your team doesn’t have to. Could our billing services or call answering, chart auditing, or other services be of use to your dental practice? Contact us for a consultation today!