Are you looking for techniques to increase your primary care revenue?
This can be done in many ways, but today, we’re going to focus on some of the services you can provide to your patients that increase revenue.
Here are a few services that you should consider offering in your practice:
Transitional Care Management
Transitional Care Management (TCM) is a service that can be provided to patients who are transitioning from one care setting to another.
You're already managing the transition of hospitalized patients to home, but only being paid for the office visit. Providing TCM allows you to get paid for the work you're already doing for free.
This service requires 3 simple tasks:
- Calling the patient in 2 business days
- A visit in 1-2 weeks, depending on the code
- A review of the discharge summary and medication reconciliation
It's important to note that this service is not to be used with every discharge--just with patients who require additional non-in-person medical support as they transition home.
Patients who receive TCM are more likely to stick with their care plan and take their medications as prescribed. This reduces unnecessary visits and increases overall patient satisfaction.
If you are not already offering TCM services, now is the time to start. You can increase your primary care revenue by providing this valuable service to your patients.
Annual Medicare Wellness Visits
Annual Wellness Visits (AWV) provided by Medicare allow physicians to bill for problem-oriented visits the same day, so long as the documentation for the wellness visit hasn't been used to select the level of problem-oriented visit.
Some physicians were against the idea of AWVs at first, because there was no physical exam required. However, these visits don't prohibit an exam, and have high payment.
When implemented successfully, staff will record and collect the wellness visit data, and the NPP or physician will document the personalized prevention plan, as well as problem-oriented plan (if relevant).
Reporting wellness and problem-oriented visits on the same day is incredibly beneficial for both you and the patient, and can help bring in more money to your practice.
Advance Care Planning
Advance Care Planning (ACP) is a discussion of end-of-life issues that you can be paid to have with patients and/or their family. It is particularly useful for family members who are looking to talk about long-term plans or changes in a patient's condition.
Medicare typically pays around $86 for a "30-minute" ACP discussion. As long as you meet over half of these minutes (16 minutes minimum), you can bill for it.
It can be billed along with the office visit, however, it can't be double-counted. ACP should also only be used when the patient's condition changes and a discussion is needed--not every day of a hospitalization.
TCM, AWVs, and ACP are all mutually beneficial services that can help you increase your primary care revenue. Because they also provide valuable care to your patients, they can also increase patient satisfaction and loyalty.
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