How We Are Helping Clients Through the Covid-19 Pandemic

Everyone could use some healing at a moment such as this. Our time in medical billing – over six decades – has exposed us to a lot of different circumstances. And yet, we have not seen a disruptive force such as the Covid-19 pandemic. Every day, many of our healthcare partners grapple with huge reductions in patient visits and practice finances. On top of that, medical staff are also suffering coronavirus symptoms, creating operational challenges. Clearly, a heavy dose of healing is due. 

While nothing can fully prepare us for when a crisis appears, DocFinancial’s decades-long experience provides an exceptional foundation. We are medical billing and coding experts, and our mission is to help practices maintain a healthy revenue flow. But our roles do not stop there. Our team functions as a support staff for your practice, providing a variety of services so providers can survive and thrive, even under difficult circumstances. How does this work? Let’s find out.

DocFinancial Can Connect Healthcare Groups to Financial Aid

Patient fees are a major source of revenue, which contributes to a practice’s ability to attract high-quality staff and offer the best procedures and surgeries. Clearly, there are fewer patients visiting medical providers. While the pandemic is evolving daily, data presents a snapshot of difficulties experienced across a spectrum of healthcare groups. 

CARES Act, PPP loans and Provider Relief Fund

An early May report by the Kaiser Family Foundation finds community health centers are experiencing a “steep” decline in patient visits, or a staggering 43-percent drop versus pre Covid-19 numbers. US hospitals are also suffering. Another May report, this one from the International Travel & Health Insurance Journal, reports hospitals lose as much as $50 billion a month due to a plethora of factors, including:

• Greater expenses tied to preparation for Covid-19 patients
• Decreased revenues from shutting down regular operations
• Increased number of uninsured patients 

Stepping into the financial void created by fewer patients is federal aid, chiefly the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (CARES). This has several provisions, including the Payment Protection Program (PPP), which offers loans that may be forgiven when used to maintain payrolls and other specific expenses, according to the US Chamber of Commerce. 

Additionally, there is the CARES Act Provider Relief Fund, a $50-billion allocation targeted at specific healthcare entities:

• Hospitals in high-impact areas
• Rural providers
• Skilled nursing facilities
• Tribal hospitals, clinics and urban health centers
• Providers who bill for Medicaid and CHIP but do not receive General Distribution funds
• Safety net hospitals

DocFinancial Supports Medical Staff 

So much of medical billing and coding – as well as applying for federal financial aid – requires careful calculations, applications and record keeping. Practices rely on staff with the bandwidth and expertise to maintain a revenue flow. And while this process was difficult pre Covid-19, the virus has only made it more challenging. 

Medical staff are hurting due to Covid-19. By one estimate, one-in-ten employees at community healthcare centers are not working due to the coronavirus. And medical coding has changed as a result of the virus. During the pandemic, a new batch of medical codes was released to reflect new tests, diagnoses and other items. Together, these factors create great hurdles for practices to overcome. Now’s the time to get the support your team needs. Put DocFianancial on the case. 

How DocFinancial Can Help

At DocFinancial, we are a team of medical billing experts with extensive backgrounds in accounting and medical coding. When clients partner with us, their business becomes our business. We perform our duties as an extension of your office, generating a healthy revenue flow, guiding your employees through paperwork and connecting you to our unparalleled network. Best of all, we help you get paid – no more leaving dollars behind due to file errors. 

Give DocFinancial a call, and let us find what we take care of you.