The effects on an incorrect base rate

Last week ABS Inc. revealed the most common errors made when submitting your billing. This week we are going to cover the fee schedule errors that give cause for concern and frequently lead to emergency services missing out on reimbursements from Medicare, normally caused by the initial set up of the billing regime and processes.

Methods of billing are very common problem area. Medicare carriers require providers to submit bills for the service by one of the available four methods. If you have a fully itemized fee schedule and if your carrier has placed limits, or you opt to bill using the method that permits the mileage and base rate, you are then unable to bill for medications, disposable supplies or any additional itemized charges.

If you had the foresight to establish the base rate that was inclusive of itemized charges, then this should not be an issue. However if your base rate is not inclusive you are not going to maximize your Medicare reimbursement, and any attempt to bill for the additional itemized elements is likely to see you being charged with a violation of Medicare regulations.

Now we will have a look at the issue of inappropriate charges. Medicare’s regulations require ambulance providers to include reusable and routine supplies as part of their base rate. Disposable gloves, linens, backboards etc. are considered to be base rate inclusive by Medicare, and again any attempt to make a separate charge for such items, Medicare regulations are violated.

Issues such as these, if not avoided from the outset, can become quite a serious issue for your business as you face a high probability of violating one or more of the Medicare regulations, and worse still you may be losing money from the day you start simply because you have set the base rate at an inappropriate level.

By employing the services of ABS Inc. these types of issues can be addressed and we can get your business maximizing its return from Medicare. Contact us today, we have the knowledge and experience to transform your billing system and return reimbursements that you are entitled to once the billing system is correctly set-up.