Revenue and cash flow considerations of accepting in-network vs. out of network patients

Do you know how McDonald’s considered all-day breakfast?  When McDonald’s was considering a multitude of consumer requests for all day breakfast, a study was done to see about how the company could accomplish such a feat from an operational standpoint and the impact on overall revenue for millions of stores worldwide. It was found that because the stores were already covering overhead for lunch and dinner even if they charge less for breakfast items all day, the increase in revenue would be substantial.  There were many operational considerations, but ultimately, they found ways to overcome those challenges and the stores realized substantial revenue gains.

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]We all know that drug abuse is a terrifying threat to communities all over our country, as well as the entire planet. However, when you begin to break down the numbers, the true mortality rates that our country is enduring, due to addiction, begins to paint a bleak and disheartening picture of how extreme this epidemic is becoming. Drug addiction is decreasing. Far from it, actually. As far as mortality rates go, in America, drug abuse is one of the top causes of injury death. It's important to note that when we talk about injury deaths, we are not talking about all of the natural ways people die in this country. Instead, injury deaths refer to when someone is killed by a factor that is human-caused. This may be intentional or unintentional, and can include murder or self harm. In terms of drug abuse, it falls under the category of self-poisoning. Here is some more information about this picture of mortality in our country...

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]ICD -10, the 10th Revision-Clinical Modification of The International Classification of diseases, was created by the World Health Organization to have a system designed for classification and reporting diseases. If you're not familiar with it, it's basically a medical coding index that helps relate medical expenses to the actual item a patient is being billed for (i.e. "A34.W4" corresponds to "Alcohol withdrawal delirium").  Version 10 will soon replace ICD-9 and if  medical billing is a part of your company's responsibilities, you'll need to transition to using the new version. The good news is, there's time to prepare -- the compliance date for ICD-10 implementation has been delayed to October 1, 2015.  

As a culture we are entertained by  stories about real people.  No matter if it's about the unsung hero or the stereotypical drug addict recluse, the movie industry doesn’t play favorites. In fact, it remains to be seen if the film industry is even trying to help you distinguish the difference between the two. In one study conducted by The Royal Society of Medicine, the facts show the existence of sex and drugs are most often shown in a positive light across the top 200 movies in the past 20 years. So what does this mean and how does it affect behavioral health across the board?

Benefits of The Joint Commission Accreditation 

American Health care today is a corporate business.  Medical care, mental health care and substance abuse treatment are all at the mercy of this system.

Mental health and medical solo practitioners are looking to gain support through joining groups versus staying in their solo practices.  The Affordable Care Act is allowing for that shift through mandating mental health benefits and insurance coverage, along with the Mental Health Parity Law, requiring private and public insurers to cover mental health needs at the same level as medical conditions — charge, for example, similar co- pays.

Elevated Billing exists not only to serve your substance abuse billing needs, but also to spread awareness that it is a disease, that people continue to maintain misconceptions of. We've put together a few common myths around substance abuse addiction, and aim to hopefully clear up some confusion. If you know of someone in need of help reach out to them.

Elevated Billing takes pride in it's workforce. It can be very particular when it comes to finding the right candidates for job openings. However when it is all said and done, it's about finding individuals with the right values, goals, and skillsets necessary to fit the team dynamic.