The home health industry is worth over $299 billion and is increasing in value every year. There has never been a better time to launch a home care agency or home health agency. However, if you want your home health agency to survive, you’ll have to avoid common billing errors. Billing issues can frustrate clients and make you lose valuable time. Even more importantly, they can make it difficult to keep cash flowing to cover your expenses.
Home care billing is complicated, but below are some tips that can help. Keep reading — this article will explain the common billing errors to avoid so that your home health agency alleviates the struggles of getting paid on time.
Not Verifying Eligibility
The eligibility requirements for home health coverage can be confusing. It’s not always easy to verify that your client is eligible for coverage. Some agencies rush through the verification process and end up making mistakes.
If you don’t verify eligibility right away, you’ll be faced with rejected reimbursement claims. Fortunately, this is one of the easiest mistakes to avoid. Be careful in verifying your clients’ eligibility and you’ll never have this frustrating problem again.
Being Confused About Your MAC
Your Medicare Administrative Contractor, or MAC, is a key piece of your billing puzzle. Your MAC takes care of all your Medicare interactions, including:
- Accepting your Medicare enrollment application
- Processing the claims you submit
- Assessing your clients’ eligibility for Medicare
- Determining and disbursing your reimbursements
Your MAC is the portal through which you access all Medicare-related services. However, it’s not always easy to figure out who your MAC is. Find your MAC by state and get their contact information before you begin your home health startup.
Not Using a Billing Service
When you are just starting a home health agency, it’s tempting to shoulder the burden of billing on your own. After all, you’re taking care of everything else — why not add one more task to your to-do list?
Processing your agency’s financial needs on your own often leads to more home health billing problems. These include:
- Delays in getting paid
- Confusion in the billing process
- Making mistakes in entering service codes
- Billing for an incorrect service
- Accidentally admitting patients that truly aren’t eligible
Making billing mistakes can add to the stress of home care agencies. More importantly, you might lose track of what’s most important—Patient Care.
A billing service avoids all these problems. Instead of worrying about how to enter a payer setup, you can spend your time building your agency and caring for your clients.
With these tips, you can avoid frustrating billing issues. You’ll save money, increase cash flow, and avoid unnecessary stress.
Home Health Agencies, Say Hello to your Billing Partner
Home health agencies already have plenty to worry about. You shouldn’t have to take time away from your patients to deal with the billing process.
When it comes to home health billing, you don’t have to do it alone. Imark Billing specializes in home health and hospice billing so that your agency can focus on the care of your patients. Contact us today for a free consultation.
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