On a weekly basis, it seems a client or prospective client asks me to provide to them some helpful tips to increase revenue, decrease denials and improve the overall function of a hospital or physician business office. What a loaded question! My short answer is to always review your managed care practices and actively participate in your payer contract negotiations. Here are my 5 tips for future success.
- Establish consistent contact terms. Specifically for physician groups. Contract terms are often inconsistent across healthcare systems.
- Never feel pressured to sign a contract if you have questions. Contracts are often signed without a full understanding of its future impact and importance.
- Avoid varying terms. Varying term lengths create surprises and constant pressure on contract renewal deadlines. This leads to last-minute and haphazard renegotiations.
- Be proactive, not reactionary. Hospitals are often reacting to existing or potential deals, limiting their ability to proactively seek or plan for needed alignments.
- No fear. Just embrace that fact that there will be surprises.
If you have any questions or would like a demo of Parathon’s Hospital and Physician contract management tool, please contact me jgibson@parathon.com.