The Warbird approach produced a quick win and ongoing performance improvement. In two short months, the hospital’s denials went down, revenue went up and cash collection improved by $3.2 million with $2.2 million pending.
If you’re feeling pressure from tight margins and sluggish cash flow, you’re not alone. Almost half of rural hospitals lost money in 2017,1 making it tough to manage cash for everything from day-to-day operating expenses to long-term lending requirements and capital plans. Given today’s reimbursement uncertainties, days cash on hand is a critical measure for every hospital.
Many hospitals lack the resources to pinpoint and fix their cash flow problems, putting themselves at financial risk. A smart alternative is to bring in third-party consultants who can objectively assess the situation and implement solutions the hospital can sustain long after the consultants are gone.
A southern U.S. hospital with fewer than 65 beds did just that, hiring Warbird Consulting Partners to help address bad debt, slow cash collection and increased accounts receivable (AR), especially those 90 days and greater. Warbird, whose consultants all have hands-on experience in healthcare finance, revenue cycle and IT, brought in AR specialists to review, correct and resubmit claims to payers to accelerate reimbursement. The Warbird team identified denial trends by payer, type and hospital department to pinpoint root causes and documented denials tracking and appeal processes. Finally, they trained the hospital staff to do the work themselves to sustain positive results.
The Warbird approach produced a quick win and ongoing performance improvement. In two short months, the hospital’s denials went down, revenue went up and cash collection improved by $3.2 million with $2.2 million pending. The denials backlog shrunk, reducing AR inventory by 34.6%. The ratio of project cost versus return, based on $3.2 million, was one to five, proving that regardless of size, hospitals have the potential for a big payback using the right partner and approach.
Contact us today to see how we can help you.
Contact Info
Michael Draa, CEO
404-496-5230
mdraa@warbirdcp.com
Doug Fenstermaker, Senior CFO
404-496-5230
dfenstermaker@warbirdcp.com
[1]“New Data Reveals More Rural Hospitals Losing Money,” The Hospital & Healthsystem Association of Pennsylvania, February 7, 2018.