ePCRs protect you and your patients, ensure care quality, enable improvement over time—and help you get paid. EMS agencies continue to struggle to make ends meet. The cost of EMS patient care continues to rise, while ambulance reimbursement rates continue to disappoint. In addition, Federal and state regulations continue to multiply. When payers and regulators fail to see the immense value EMS brings to healthcare, economical solutions can be hard to find.

Strained communications between EMS dispatchers, crews, and facilities can cause paralyzing ambulance delays. EMS agencies continue to struggle to make ends meet. The cost of EMS patient care continues to rise, while ambulance reimbursement rates continue to disappoint. In addition, Federal and state regulations continue to multiply. When payers and regulators fail to see the immense value EMS brings to healthcare, economical solutions can be hard to find.

The new year is quickly approaching—that means new deductibles. How does your EMS Agency plan to handle exposure to deductibles this January? There is no way to completely alleviate the reduction of revenue your EMS agency will experience from deductibles, but there are ways to reduce your exposure. For instance, it's a common EMS billing practice to hold January Medicare Part B claims for 3-4 weeks before submitting. Sometimes it's longer, depending on the length of time that crossover takes. Doing this helps to reduce exposure to deductibles that minimize the number of patient pay claims. In other words, to reduce your exposure to deductibles, don't file too early in the year.

Jamie from Lumberton Emergency Squad reflects on the professionalism and compassion of AIM EMS Billing Services and the value of being able to access her agency’s patient information and communicate with her billing service whenever needed.

Anyone who knows anything about EMS billing knows billers have enough on their plate. EMS billers work hard daily to prepare claims, ensure compliance, address denials, and much more. They do a great job, but often focus so much on taming that mountain of day-to-day tasks that they inadvertently neglect EMS accounts receivable management. EMS accounts receivable management attempts to resolve debtor balances, but also tracks how much revenue comes in and how long it takes to receive it. When EMS billers don’t consistently perform these tasks, the entire agency suffers the consequences.

“Thank you” comes few and far between in EMS. Patients occasionally thank first responders, who definitely deserve it. They work in all climates, all environments, and whenever called. Behind the scenes, EMS billers and supporting staff are even less likely to receive recognition for their dedication and hard work.

EMS billing staff require complete, accurate data to submit claims to payers. If crews can’t document and collect all necessary patient care data and forms during a transport, EMS billers will have to play catch-up. These delays will disrupt the entire EMS billing process and later revenue collection.

Inevitably, senior ambulance billers will (and should) influence EMS billing software decisions. EMS billers are constantly under fire when it comes to compliance, rejection/denial rates, and efficiency. It’s not easy for EMS billers to manage all the demands of ambulance billing while still maintaining quality. In order to meet the high demands of ambulance billing, EMS billers need a software that works for them and not against them.

EMS-oriented groups continue to lobby on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. and other major capitols to improve EMS reimbursement rates. Although we remain hopeful that government change will work in our favor, EMS administrators and managers continue to negotiate rates with private insurance companies and look for ways to increase billing efficiency. After all, what kind of EMS administrator or manager wouldn’t want faster and higher reimbursement on EMS insurance claims?

The holy grail of successful ambulance billing is an efficient EMS workflow that includes the entire ambulance service staff, from dispatch to first responders, EMTs, and medics to billers, all working together, and all on the same page. Clearly, open and effective communications, and EMS workflow between these key EMS operational areas will minimize the amount of time between dispatch, patient care and transport, billing, and receiving payment for services rendered.