April 2022 - Money Tree Billing

5 Ways to Grow Your Practice (#1 is so easy!)

April 26, 2022 Developer

5 Ways to Grow your Chiropractic or Physical Therapy Practice (#1 is so easy!)

Do you feel like your physical therapy practice is sitting dormant? Or maybe you’re wondering how your chiropractic business can make more money? Honestly, if you asked a team of experts the best suggestions for practice growth, you’d be left with a long, long list. Where would you even start?

New clients are a crucial part of growing your practice, so you may want to try a few different tactics to see what’s most effective in attracting patients. We’ve narrowed down a very long list of ideas to the top five that have led to significant growth for other clinics.

Here are five proven strategies for physical therapists and chiropractors to get more patients and get more revenue.

5. Start a Referral Program

Word of mouth advertising is one of the most powerful marketing methods to this day. If existing patients love your services, their friends and family are sure to hear about you. And why not reward that? If a new client comes to your practice specifically because a current client told them about you, you’ll delight that word-of-mouth patient even more by recognizing their recommendation. You could offer a certain dollar amount off their next visit, or partner with a local business to give out gift cards. Rewarding quality referrals is worth every penny. And yes, we know there are limitations on what and how much appreciation you can gift for a referral. If this idea makes you nervous, then remember that a sincere thank you and personal recognition can also go a long way.

While we’re on the subject of referrals, another wonderful source for new patients is your local network. Build relationships with local physicians and practitioners via business networking opportunities, fundraisers, trade shows, community events, and your local Chamber of Commerce. Connect with the high school and sports programs in your area offering sports evals, and education. Partner with large corporations to be a part of the health & wellness programs they offer to their staff. If they need to refer a patient for more specialized care, hopefully you are the first name they think of. And you can reciprocate by referring your patients to them.

4. Upgrade Your Software

It’s no secret that the right software will streamline the efficiency of your practice. If you spend less time managing medical records and check-ins, you’ll have more time to focus on your practice growth. In fact, we believe this is such an important piece for your clinic that we only partner with practices that use Eclipse or ChiroTouch software. These quality programs help your team work effectively with (and we quote) a seamless flow from check-in to check-out, billing to claims, and scheduling to follow up. Best of all, it’s easy to get up and running in no time at all.

3. Outsource your Insurance Billing

The thought of giving up control of such an important part of your business can be unnerving, and maybe even terrifying. It sounds complicated, but the reality is it’s the complete opposite. It’s more profitable to outsource your billing needs because it limits errors, saves time for employees to focus on other duties, and eliminates the stress of trying to keep up with the constantly-changing codes used in billing. Did you know that 4 out of 5 medical bills contain errors? Check out our recent post on insurance billing mistakes if you’re not convinced.

Outsourcing your insurance billing to coding experts will benefit you in many ways.

Maximize collections
Increase cash flow
Collect payments faster
Have an entire team of billing experts behind you

We would be honored if you’d consider outsourcing your insurance billing needs to Money Tree Billing. Our professional, detail-oriented billing experts will help reduce stress and eliminate mistakes that are costing you and your staff time and money. To get started, schedule a call today or contact us.

2. Invest in Digital Marketing

This is a huge category to cover, so don’t feel like you have to do it all. Traditional marketing methods include social media, newsletters, search engine optimization (SEO), search engine marketing (SEM), and targeted social media boosts. Based on your budget, you may want to try one or many ideas and experiment with what collects the best leads. If your efforts are not converting customers, make necessary adjustments like changing direction, redesigning, or changing your message. You may have someone in your office comfortable with marketing, otherwise you may want to consider hiring a freelancer or agency to help implement successful campaigns.

Make sure you have a clean, responsive website with clear calls to action and engaging, keyword-focused content. Also, connect with and engage followers on social media to expand your reach and build relationships. Once you have meaningful content, you can then start directing traffic to specific pages or landing pages on your website and social media. Use analytics to see what’s working and what’s not, and so you can understand where people drop off along the way. By paying close attention to your sales process and conversion rates, you can nurture leads to inform, entertain, delight and convert them into paying customers.

1. Ask for Patient Testimonials

What is the first thing a potential client will do when interested in your services? They Google your business and read the reviews. Whether those testimonials are on your Google page, social media, third party sites, or your own website, customer feedback is an excellent tool for someone to decide whether or not you’ll be a good fit. This is why it’s so important to secure your online reputation.

There are ways to automate requests for testimonials, but a good old-fashioned conversation right after their session is often the better way to ask. If a patient is overjoyed at their experience with you, it won’t take much convincing for them to go one step further and share their experience. You can alternately ask in an email, and provide an easy link straight to your Google reviews. Most happy customers will write their testimonial if you simply ask them.

Real reviews from real patients strengthen your credibility and establish trust. It’s social proof that your practice goes above and beyond to satisfy your clients. By boosting your online reputation, you’ll attract and convert leads into sales. And if someone leaves you a dreaded one star review, respond to it immediately with compassion and concern. Try to address their issue, not only to not lose that customer, but to improve your process and show others reading that review that you truly care about improving your practice.

There you have it, our top five ways to grow your practice.

As you can see, there isn’t one singular solution to flood your business with customers. All of this can be a little overwhelming, so start with one that inspires you and see where that takes you. Growing your practice isn’t easy, and it won’t happen magically overnight. With the right marketing tools and an attitude focused on improving client care, you’ll soon see your effort rewarded. Remember, the easiest way to stand out from your competition is to always offer exceptional care. You’ll keep happy patients, they’ll talk to others about their experience, and maybe they’ll even write you a review. All you have to do is ask!

Education

Avoid These 5 Common Insurance Billing Mistakes

April 24, 2022 Developer

Avoid These 5 Common Coding and Billing Mistakes

At the core of your practice’s success is financials. While having the best team possible and establishing yourself as a leading provider in your community are important, ultimately business comes down to one question. Are you making money or losing money?

Unfortunately, 4 out of 5 medical bills (a staggering 80%) contain errors, according to Becker’s Hospital Review. We are only human, and everyone makes mistakes from time to time. When it comes to insurance billing, even the smallest mistake can have a huge financial impact. Here are five coding and billing mistakes that could be costing your practice time and money.

1. Unverified Insurance

Always, always, always verify insurance before providing services. Sometimes in the interest of saving time, a receptionist will allow a patient through without verification. Maybe the line in the lobby is long and they’re overwhelmed. Maybe they waited on hold with the insurance provider for ages before giving up and thinking, “I’ll check in a minute.” Maybe they trust a certain individual, or assume they’re insured because of a previous interaction. Whatever the reason, best practice is to make it a requirement to double check insurance beforehand.

2. Incomplete or Incorrect Information

Data entry errors are the most common type of mistake on claims, and they can be the most costly. Typos, misspellings, mistakes, not enough documentation, incorrect policy numbers, missing information, and incorrect quantities are all trivial errors that can lead to immediate claim denial. These mistakes not only hurt staff’s efficiency and productiveness, but can also be very expensive to remedy.

How to avoid?
Double check all information, always. By taking a moment to verify all the patient’s data, you’ll save yourself time down the road. Have a third party review information, or if you’re filing e-claims make sure your software flags any missing fields. Use of an electronic health record, or EHR, will cut down mistakes and errors made by staff.

3. Wrong Diagnosis or Procedure Codes

Another frequent issue that can lead to denials is if the diagnosis and treatment coding don’t match, or if the coding is not specific enough. With the industry constantly changing, most coders have a hard time keeping up with the latest codes. The use of outdated coding resources will certainly mean a loss of revenue.

To make sure information is correct from the very beginning, you should stay up to date on coding rules and modifications. Track what’s being updated, changed, and replaced, use the right modifiers, and always use the latest version of your software. The software you use is critical to your success. We highly recommend Eclipse and ChiroTouch.

4. Upcoding, Undercoding & Unbundling

Upcoding is the intentional misuse or exaggeration of billing codes that inflate payment owed for services.
Undercoding is when a patient’s bills don’t accurately show the service they receive. This may be deliberately done, to give a patient a deal. It could also be an unintentional mistake, a simple failure to accurately account for the full services provided.
Unbundling is when the provider separates related services that should fall under the same code. They’ll charge a la carte instead of a package code, with the intention to get paid more for services rendered.

These errors are common and sometimes accidental. If your employees are overwhelmed, inexperienced, or not up-to-date on industry changes, they may not even be aware that they are performing potentially illegal actions. Whether intentional or an innocent mistake, upcoding, undercoding, and unbundling can have a huge impact on revenue. Worst case scenarios may result in fines and criminal prosecution. Best case scenario? Consult or outsource to a specialist to answer questions and help ensure claims are billing appropriately. At Money Tree Billing, we partner with our clients to reduce risk, minimize errors, and educate on common billing mistakes.

5. Duplicate Billing

Duplicate billing, or double billing, is when a procedure is billed more than once. Even in organized practices, it’s easy to accidentally submit claims for the same patient’s treatment. If someone fails to check that the original claim was submitted, or if someone resubmits a claim before hearing back on the initial claim, they’re guaranteed denial.

How to avoid?
Be careful not to bill for services more than once, and be sure to know when to re-bill vs. send a corrected claim vs. void an existing claim. This may seem obvious, but it’s important to keep a record of all submitted claims, especially if more than one person in your office is responsible for this.

So, do 4 out of your 5 bills contain errors?

These five common mistakes we’ve mentioned above will help you know what to watch out for to increase your cashflow. However, for ultimate peace of mind consider outsourcing your insurance billing needs to Money Tree Billing.

Our professional, detail-oriented billing experts will help eliminate mistakes that are costing you and your staff time and money. And with the best guarantee in the industry, you can rest assured that your practice is maximizing your revenue. To get started, schedule a call today or contact us.