Top Revenue Cycle Outsourcing Myths—Exposed
In this 5-part blog series, we explore the most common myths around working with a partner for revenue cycle management—and offer practical tips for gaining the most from your investment. Start the series from the beginning by reading our first post, addressing the myth that seamless integration of multiple solutions isn’t impossible. Then, gain more insight from our second post, which shares strategies for bolstering communication with RCM vendors, and our third post, which explores why RCM isn’t just for billing.
RCM Outsourcing Myth No. 4: RCM Partners Don’t Assist with Reporting
More than 80 percent of physician practices plan to move toward automated solutions for revenue cycle management by the end of 2018, a recent survey found. But as practices partner with vendors around these solutions, some leaders fear they’ll have to relinquish their data in the process.This is largely due to a common revenue cycle management (RCM) myth: that partners won’t assist them with their reporting needs—including in the move toward value.With changes in MACRA reporting requirements remaining top of mind for physician practice leaders, it’s natural to seek assurance that your RCM partner has both the expertise and tools to reliably support compliance efforts. Beyond value reporting, practices also need robust reporting features that:
- Provide transparency into revenue cycle performance
- Clearly identify opportunities for actionable improvement
- Engage physicians and staff in performance enhancement
Selecting the right RCM partner means ensuring constant access into key performance indicators and the ability to turn data into action. There are three ways physician practices can gain the most from their RCM reporting partnership.
Ask for a demo of the RCM vendor’s reporting platform.
Ensure your team has access to robust reporting capabilities with assistance from your RCM partner, and develop a strategy for sharing data with physicians and key staff members regularly. High levels of transparency around revenue cycle performance are key to gaining trust from key stakeholders as well as buy-in. This is an underlying point in our second blog post, which shares strategies for strengthening communication between a healthcare facility and its RCM partners.
Look for a solution that provides RCM data insights in real time.
Access to real-time data provides practices with a high degree of transparency into performance of specific accounts and the progress being made toward the practice’s goals. It also provides a starting point for discussion around the value the practice is receiving from its RCM partnership. Seek a platform that displays performance data in a highly visual format so it can be easily understood at a glance when presented to other staff, as suggested above.
When it comes to value reporting, work with your RCM partner to determine which reporting method holds the greatest benefit.
For example, under MACRA, eligible clinicians who report on Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) quality measures through their EHR used to have 64 quality measures to choose from; now, there are only 55. Yet clinicians who report on quality measures through another source, like a CMS-approved qualified registry, have nearly 300 measures to choose from. The limited number of EHR quality reporting options puts specialty clinicians and practices at a disadvantage, forcing some specialty clinicians to report on quality measures that are not meaningful to their work.Further complicating the issue is the fact that clinicians receive a bonus point for reporting through the EHR. Additionally, benchmarks for a single measure differ based on the submission method.As CMS works to address these issues in 2019, this is a great opportunity to test your RCM partner’s level of knowledge about these reporting requirements—and to collaborate in selecting the right reporting approach for your practice.The final post in this series will debunk one last key myth in RCM outsourcing: There will always be a lack of progress resulting from the partnership.
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PulseRCM clients realize an increase in their charges, a significant increase in receipts and fewer days in A/R with Pulse reporting solutions. Learn more about Pulse’s robust reporting platform.