Minimize Medical Billing Cash Flow Issues With ICD -10

When any business is involved with a major system conversion, at risk is the potential disruption to medical billing cash flow, resulting in a negative impact to the bottom line.

While it is expected that reimbursements will initially decline with ICD-10 conversion, providers should now take  advantage of the time remaining to assess and put in place a risk plan that will address any cash flow isues  from moving to ICD-10. To help providers prepare for the change  to ICD-10 some suggestions follow:

Minimize Medical Billing Cash Flow Issues With ICD -10

• Explore and determine budgeting avenues for additional cash reserves if  there are  delays in payments resulting from the transition.
• Perform a comprehensive review of all managed care contracts to negotiate protective language regarding reimbursement in the event payment shifts occur that could have a negative impact to cash flow.
• Discuss with your major payers about their readiness to process claims in the ICD-10 compliant format.
• Conduct  documentation improvement reviews with all staff using the ICD-10 code set.
• Develop a plan for managing claim denials pre and post ICD-10 implementation.

As the United States moves closer towards the deadline for this important classification conversion, top priority for both payers and providers should be on what IT systems will require revamping, what in-office processes will require re-assessing, and budgeting for any potential problems or issues. Providers  who plan for ICD-10 implementation  are most likely to experience a smooth transition to ICD-10.

By: Dawn Moreno, PhD, CBCS, CMAA, MTC. Lives in the beautiful Southwest United States and has been an instructor for medical coding/billing for the past 7 years. Interested in quality medical billing training?  Medical Biller Tips and Resources: Click Here

Read more Details about Medical Billing Cash Flow

R evenue Cycle Management

AAPC – Manage Cash Flow Successfully