Why Medical Debt Recovery Demands a P.H.D. Approach Today

While many of us stayed home in a bid to flatten the curve, healthcare workers have been on the frontlines, working tirelessly to keep people safe from COVID-19.

Here at Summit A*R, we want to thank everyone in the medical profession for taking care of the country’s most vulnerable people. It doesn’t matter if you’re a personal support worker, ER nurse, or a clinic administrator. We appreciate everyone’s role in the fight against the coronavirus.

Thanks to you, more than 790,000 people and counting have recovered from the coronavirus to date. Eventually, we’ll turn a corner, and you’ll go back to what you always do: delivering essential medical support to those who need it.

But how can you carry on with business as usual if overdue bills threaten your ability to keep the lights on?

As one of the country’s leading medical revenue debt collection services, our experienced team of negotiators can help healthcare practitioners rescue their struggling profit margins.

Overdue Medical Bills Impact Your Care

Your battle against COVID-19 has been front and center in the headlines. What the news fails to report is your fight to get paid.

Before COVID-19 swept through the nation, one in three U.S. workers had some outstanding medical debt. That’s according to a new survey from Salary Finance, which reports 28 percent of these debtors owe more than $10,000 in bills. 

Unfortunately, collections issues are only going to get worse as the pandemic continues. The country has been hit hard by closures, and the unemployment rate (which reached 14.7% in March) has not been this high since the Great Depression in the 1930s. As deductibles rise, more of the financial burden shifts to patients who aren’t prepared to cover out-of-pocket medical bills.

With people earning less and needing medical care more, you’re in a tight spot. Cash flow is critical to running your business, but so are your patients.

Balancing Receivables with Reputation

As a medical collection agency, we understand nobody plans on getting sick or racking up bills they can’t afford. Accidents happen, unexpected medical conditions present, and people fall ill. When they do, they need your help, regardless of what’s in their bank account.

We keep this in the back of our minds every time we collect overdue medical debt. Our friendly debt collectors understand the sensitive nature of recovering medical debt, especially during these unprecedented times. That’s why we rely on our P.H.D. (Preserve Human Dignity) philosophy to ensure we treat your patients with compassion, respect, and kindness.

We never rely on unethical or hostile techniques. These underhanded tactics will cancel out all the time and effort you put into building relationships with your patients.

Our professional approach to collection services preserves your valuable relationships with patients. It helps us inform them you’re serious about getting paid but in a way that won’t alienate people who have fallen on hard times.

What Can We Offer as Your Medical Collection Agency?

With one of our experienced debt specialists on the case, you can expect hassle-free medical revenue service collections. Our knowledgeable staff have a solid understanding of the nuances of insurance reimbursement, and we’re 100% HIPAA-compliant.  

We also have a user-friendly, fully HIPAA-compliant portal on our website. There, you can review the status of your accounts anytime you want. With a click of your mouse, you can download reports, view payment activity, and even place new accounts for collection.

For most medical revenue service collections, we aim to complete our task within 90 days. If stubborn cases take longer, we have a licensed private investigator and specialized tools to help recover what you’re owed.

These tools include comprehensive skip tracing to locate patients who may have moved without forwarding their address.

As a nationwide medical collection agency, we can leverage credit reporting to convince mulish patients to pay up. Our ability to report unpaid bills to one of the major credit bureaus is something your in-house collections department can’t do.

We also have a full-service litigation program to determine if and when it’s profitable to take your patient to court.

All in all, we have what it takes to convince people to pay what they owe. Thanks to our skilful approach to medical revenue service collections, we boast a recovery rate that’s twice the national average.

Consider Pre-Collections Services for Your Practice

In addition to medical revenue service collections, you can put us on the job of your A/R cycle. Our pre-collections services will handle all your “busy work” like patient billing, telephone follow-ups, and insurance follow-ups. Our no-complaint policy means you can trust us to represent your practice professionally, so you can finally focus on what really matters.

With more than two decades in the industry, we have perfected the collections process in every situation. This includes dental practices that need help with consumer collections. Our dedicated collection experts who specialize in dental collection services apply unique solutions for your industry, so you can get what you’re owed.

No matter what, we always respect the rules that regulate the way we approach debt collections. When you haven’t been in the business for 28 years, keeping on top of these regulations may be a challenge, especially now that the guidelines are constantly changing to accommodate the pandemic.

Your specialty is healthcare, not the law. But here at Summit A*R, it’s our job to monitor these regulations closely so that we can confidently say we’re above board at every step of the collection process. We work hard to follow all local, state, and federal mandates, even as they change day-to-day.

During these unprecedented times, your cash flow management is crucial. Positive cash flow ensures you can keep providing essential care on the frontlines of this country.

While balancing your cash flow may seem difficult in times like these, it is possible. COVID-19 may have brought changes to the nature of your work, but it hasn’t changed anything for us. We’re still treating our consumers with dignity, given the current health challenges and economic situations.

Now’s the perfect time to partner with us so that we can clean up your bad debt challenges. Give us a call to learn more about what we do, and how we maintain an A+ with the Better Business Bureau while we do it! One of our knowledgeable representatives will be happy to answer any of your questions.