HMS Patient Accounting is a comprehensive online patient account management system that integrates four key hospital functions: A/D/T and census management, patient and insurance billing, revenue and statistical reporting, and accounts receivable and collection follow-up.

Features & Benefits
Our Patient Accounting system houses a suite of applications that allow facilities to effectively capture, manage and collect patient account receivables: Admission & Registration, Charge Capture, Billing, Cashiering, Collections, Contract Management as well as Automated Account Management.

Key features

• Online edit of data - Accuracy of data is assured at time of entry since errors are corrected before being accepted by the system.
• Interface of all information to medical records/ DRG case mix reporting system - Eliminates redundant data entry.
• HL7 interface compliant with third-party systems.
• Online assistance, HELP - Answers questions immediately, saving time and money.
• All financial information sent to the general ledger module - Eliminates manual entry and error.

Registration / Admissions

• Alpha or Soundex search capability for patients and guarantors - quick alpha or numeric access to patient and guarantor information. Also tracks previous names - Quick access to critical information.
• Quick notification of open balances and/or bad debt accounts during the registration process with the ability of POS collections while the patient is registering.
• Ability to scan driver's license, insurance card, physician orders, etc. at the time of registration.
• Ability to digitally picture the patient at the time of registration.
• Online viewing/printing of admission and registration forms at time of admission with the ability to digitally sign forms. This can be done in form packets or individually - Timely, accurate processing of essential information to meet your printed information requirements in the form you need, when you need it.
• Outpatients can be registered as a single visit or recurring visit - Outpatients can be billed immediately after service or periodically billed as a recurring patient.
• Ability to change outpatient registration to inpatient admission and ability to change inpatient to outpatient - A patient's records, whether inpatient or outpatient, are maintained together for accurate billing.
• Automatic generation of patient numbers by inpatient and outpatient services; or accepts manually input numbers; edits for duplication - Eliminates expensive duplication errors; flexibility allows you to use the system or keep track of your own numbers.
• Easy cancellation of incorrect admissions/discharges - User requirements are handled by the system quickly and easily.
• Automated outpatient discharge can be set-up at the Hospital Service Code level - to occur during day-end processing or after a set number of hours.
• Online occupancy display for control of room and bed assignment continuously updated for transfers and discharges - No embarrassing, confidence-damaging, incorrect room assignments; up-to-the-minute status reports on room occupancy.
• Insurance Eligibility - Allows registration and business office personnel to receive online verification of primary, secondary and tertiary insurance for a patient; instantly updates the account in HMS.

Charge Capture/Billing

• Accounts control at guarantor level including linking of related family accounts; guarantor receivables inquiries by name or number - Maintains financial responsibility relationship and allows easy online access.
• Easy establishment of user-defined link (panel) charges so groups of charges can be handled as individual charges - Reduces clerical time and enhances communication with physicians.
• Daily posting of charges, payments and adjustments to patient accounts - Up-to-date control of patient accounts.
• Prints major insurance claims forms: UB04, CMS-1500 and detail bills; electronic claims processing via CPU to CPU - Meets billing requirements for Medicare and other insurance carriers in all states.
• Interface 837 claim files to SSI for all electronic claims submissions.
• Rebilling - All detail transactions retained to rebill insurance claim: CMS-1500, UB04, detail bill.
• Automatic billing of late charges - Assures all charges including late charges can be billed.
• Demand, cycle and final bills issued as you need them - Improves cash flow by meeting various billing requirements; decreases days in receivables.

Collections

• Automated, user-defined insurance logs by UB04 facility, bill classification and financial class - Logs to meet cost reporting requirements are automatically updated without user intervention.
• Accounts receivable statement preparation with variable statement message capability and selection options by encounter or guarantor; the ability to automatically issue patient statements as payments are received - An excellent opportunity to fit the system to your facility-s collection policies.
• Bad debt processing including write-off, recovery by agency and date with extensive reporting and inquiry - Allows you to monitor and report all bad debt activity.
• POS collections with credit card processing.
• Electronic Remit payment processing.
• Time payment processing - Makes it simple for you to follow-up on those patients who have agreed to pay on a time basis.
• An integrated collections follow-up system that automates the tickler file, comments and follow-up notes, reporting and collection letters - The computer supports your efforts to manage your collections promptly and efficiently.
• Various on-screen and printed inquiries of patient, account, detailed charges and unbilled charges with variable selection criteria for account groups such as account age, balance and financial class - Allows printed and on-screen access to the information you need to manage your business at the account level.
• A/D/T statistical recaps and reporting - Enhances management effectiveness by providing comprehensive, current information on admissions, discharges, registration and patient days.
• Daily and monthly revenue and statistical reporting - Invaluable management tools.
• Flexible, user-defined pricing with automatic price selection based on inpatient/outpatient, insurance plan and hospital service - Allows you to easily implement unique pricing strategies for various groups such as PPO, HMO or commercial carriers.
• Flexible, user-controlled rate increases or decreases. System maintains an audit of "who" and "when" a rate change was made. Rate changes are set with an effective date and are calculated by percentage and by department(s), with customized selection of rounding increments - Eases the burden of last minute price changes.
• Various user-defined control file options including retention days for monetary and demographic patient data and bad debt data for discharged zero-balance accounts - You control the automation/length of time data is retained in the system.
• Various user-selected control file options for individual tailoring, such as dollar amount for small-balance write off, diet codes and financial class report heading - You control the system and tailor it to meet your needs.
• Automated Account Management - Designed to help the hospital with some of the tedious, repetitious Business Office tasks. Through setup the system can change the financial class, send a collection letter to the guarantor or payor, create a collection comment, transfer the payor balance and transfer to the next payor financial class.
• LMRPs and NCDs available - Allows notification if Medical Necessity is not met.