Many healthcare providers have turned treating personal injury patients into big business, but most of their counterparts feel it is too much of an unknown. We thought we would start with some of the basics to help you understand the opportunity.
First, let’s understand how you get paid. Depending upon where you are geographically, either lien or LOP (letter of protection) may be the standard terminology.
A lien is a document which states you will be paid for medical services rendered from the proceeds of your patient’s personal injury case. The lien is signed by your patient, authorizing the attorney to pay for your services from the proceeds of the patient’s personal injury case settlement or aware. The attorney signs, acknowledging instructions of his or her client and promises to repay you at the conclusion of the personal injury case. A lien is necessary in the event that there is no insurance to pay for your services.
A LOP is very similar to a lien. It is a letter from the attorney requesting that you treat the patient with payment deferred until the successful resolution of the personal injury claim. Sometimes the attorney will state upfront the amount he/she is willing to repay to you at the conclusion of the personal injury case. Therefore, you may not get paid for treatment you provide in excess of that amount.
While targeting personal injury business can be extremely lucrative, there are steps you should take to maximize revenue in this very tricky financial class.
Because there is no automation of the authorization or billing process, managing and tracking these cases can be extremely labor intensive. On average, liens take 22 months to settle. During that time (almost 2 years), you will invest hundreds of man hours in phone calls to attorneys, fax countless packets of paperwork back and forth, and of course, risk the attorney not winning the case. These are all factors that cause savvy practices to find another solution.
That solution? Selling your liens. Finding the right partner to purchase your liens/LOP, either in bulk, or one case at a time, can mean the difference between high revenue or a serious loss. Red Rock purchases liens/LOP from all types of healthcare providers at a favorable rate, and guarantees payment within 30 days from invoicing. So rather than waiting for 22 months, clients are able to deposit payment and see a predictable revenue cycle.
Red Rock clients have seen tremendous success in growing this payer class by shedding the operation costs and burdens and focusing on strong marketing campaigns to grow referral volume. To learn more about how to apply this to your practice, give Jennifer a call. 217-691-6886