Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/1454979
17 Executive Briefing: Appreciating the value of ASC billing expertise: Q&A with Surgical Notes' Ken Bulow K en Bulow is executive vice president of operations for Surgical Notes. Question: What do you view as some of the most important types of ASC billing expertise surgery centers should look for in a billing partner? Ken Bulow: The company must understand the month- end, hard-close process. This does not exist in the physician or hospital space. What is particularly unique to ASCs is determining at month's end how much revenue the center generated, even if all cases are not billed yet. If you work with an expert in this area, they will have defined month-end processes that will help ensure all your cash is posted and you have an accurate reflection of the work you performed and your expected revenue. That is a significantly different outlook and approach than how the rest of healthcare works. Without the right partner, you're not going to receive those types of information. Also critically important is knowledge of the practice management systems ASCs use. There are just a few main software vendors in the space. If a billing company specializes in practice or hospital systems, they will be working at a distinct disadvantage compared to one that knows ASC systems inside and out. Q: What can ASCs do to help maximize the benefits of working with a company possessing ASC expertise? KB: Leverage their knowledge of those qualities that make ASCs unique, such as implant billing, high-cost drugs, and managing postoperative pain. The company should have what are essentially off-the-shelf processes you can implement that will help you ensure accurate, complete documentation of your case work so you can bill and get paid for it. Another benefit an ASC billing company should provide is updates about regulatory developments. For example, Medicare issues updates every quarter and then a more significant update annually. The company should help you understand whether and how such updates affect your ASC and its procedures. Q: What are some qualities an ASC may overlook or underappreciate when researching partner options? KB: The tools and technology used internally for a company's staff. Something we do at Surgical Notes is provide our staff with a list of their work for the day. This helps ensure every denial is worked within 24 hours, every underpayment is worked within 24 hours, and every piece of correspondence is resolved within 24 hours. Reporting expertise is also essential. The systems used in ASCs today can provide a lot of helpful data. You need a partner that can get the right data out of those systems to help you with various projects you may be trying to complete, such as payer contract negotiations, physician recruitment, benchmarking, and other financial needs like securing a loan or refinancing. You want a partner that knows the data well and knows their way around the data so they can help you make sound business decisions that take into consideration the uniqueness of your enterprise. Contact Ken Bulow at ken.bulow@surgicalnotes.com. n Finally, there's compliance with technology requirements. To provide RCM services, an ASC billing partner will use its own technologies and the technologies used by its clients, like practice management systems. These services and technologies should comply with security best practices and standard-setting bodies. 5. Security Financial success will be naught if an ASC billing company fails to protect its clients' sensitive data. A security breakdown that leads to a breach and theft of client data could cause financial, legal, and reputational challenges for the billing company and its partner ASCs. It's imperative that an ASC billing company treat all layers of security as a top priority. The company should keep current with best practices for security management. It should treat security and compliance as complementary. The company should have strong security and compliance leadership who understand the complementary nature of the functions and work closely together. When this is achieved, the company will perform better in these areas, as will its clients. An ASC billing company should invest in essential security solutions, including data encryption and endpoint detection and response tools. The company should also provide ongoing security training to its staff and undergo routine assessments to identify improvement opportunities. Finally, a billing company must maintain an overarching commitment to continuous improvement. This should extend to how the company manages risk and the steps it takes from a security standpoint. Choose your ASC billing partner wisely It's of critical importance that ASCs perform due diligence before choosing a billing company partner. Companies vary greatly in the types and quality of services provided and the industries where they truly specialize. The partner selected should be well-equipped with the ASC expertise to provide substantial and sustainable revenue cycle improvements. n Surgical Notes is dedicated to providing best-in-class revenue cycle solutions for the ambulatory surgery center industry. By integrating Surgical Notes' suite of products and services, ASCs have access to an enterprise revenue cycle solution designed to maximize profitability, physician distributions, and business office efficiency.