How to better validate your patients’ coverage

Validating patient coverage before you begin treatment is increasingly important. You run the risk of financial loss if you mistakenly accept or treat patients whom you believe are current members of a plan that your practice accepts or whose treatments you mistakenly believe are covered services.

You need an effective process and clearly assigned job duties to ensure validation of each patient's coverage before you begin treatment. Take these four steps to minimize your risk of losses:

1. Print out schedules one or two days early.
2. Assign one employee to verify coverage for each patient on each day's schedule.
3. Flag the charts of any patients whose coverage the staffer could not validate.
4. Photocopy both sides of patient insurance cards.

About the Author

Reed Tinsley CPA

This article is written by Reed Tinsley, a Houston, TX-based CPA with over 30 years of experience advising physicians and medical practices across Texas and the United States. Reed holds certifications as a Certified Valuation Analyst (CVA), Certified Healthcare Business Consultant (CHBC), and Certified Financial Planner (CFP), specializing exclusively in the healthcare sector. He is a published author, nationally recognized speaker, and trusted advisor to physicians on accounting & tax, practice management, and financial planning. Schedule a Free Consultation.