In the United States healthcare landscape, illnesses and medical treatments aren’t the only things growing increasingly more complex - so are the administrative processes required to be reimbursed for these vital services. These difficulties are disproportionately impacting smaller hospitals and rural health systems as they navigate them with more constrained resources. Healthcare organizations need experienced professionals to not only provide revenue cycle services but also do it effectively to maximize reimbursement. Identifying areas of cost savings is crucial to continue providing life-saving care to patients in need.
Outsourcing Revenue Cycle Functions
An impactful way health systems address this challenge is by outsourcing their revenue cycle operations to professional organizations. Outsourcing revenue cycle functions can reduce talent costs, increase access to technology, and maximize productivity. Overall, outsourcing helps lower healthcare administrative costs and increase profitability for healthcare organizations.
Reduce Talent Costs:
Recruiting in rural areas can be particularly challenging due to smaller talent pools. A recent survey from AKASA reported that the average cost to hire a mid-level revenue cycle employee is $3,581 for recruitment and 153 days to fill the vacancy. Outsourcing revenue cycle teams can alleviate this burden of searching for qualified professionals. When healthcare organizations outsource, this can provide extensive cost relief in areas such as hiring, onboarding, training, benefits, and infrastructure.
Access to Expertise and Technology:
Outsourcing goes beyond simply providing employees - healthcare organizations who outsource get access to certified revenue cycle professionals with the credentials, experience, and systems needed to improve efficiency. This team of experts brings with them the latest technology in claims processing, healthcare information management (HIM), and quality assurance. Healthcare organizations will feel the financial relief from eliminating institutional costs associated with continuing education, employee re-credentialing, and administrative technology upgrades.
Maximize Productivity:
Outsourced revenue cycle management teams are focused on providing quality and efficiency for their partnering organization. This specialized concentration on the organization’s financial success decreases the likelihood of denials, improves HIM processes, and reduces the average number of accounts receivable days. Healthcare administrators can breathe easy and focus their talents back to where they are needed most, knowing they have a trusted team of revenue cycle professionals on their side.
Start the Journey Today
Signature Performance is on a mission to reduce climbing healthcare administration costs. Our team of experts is dedicated to helping healthcare providers and organizations improve their financial performance. We offer impactful solutions across the entire revenue cycle, including patient access, insurance billing and resolution, HIM services, and revenue cycle management.
But don’t just take our word for it - check out the average results we have helped our rural health clients capture:
50% reduction in accounts receivable balance
54% reduction in accounts receivable days
39% increase in clean claims acceptance
22% improvement in coding accuracy
To learn more about how Signature Performance can help your healthcare organization improve revenue cycle operations, contact our team today!