On October 11th, Scott will give a presentation on “How AI Coupled with Automation is Sparking a Revenue Cycle Revolution” at Becker’s Annual Health IT + Revenue Cycle Conference. As part of an ongoing series, Becker’s is talking to healthcare leaders who plan to speak at the conference, which will take place October 9-12, 2019 in Chicago.
To learn more about the conference and Scott’s session, click here.
Question: What does healthcare need more of? Less of?
Scott Rowe: The revenue cycle of the future must be defined by price transparency and self-service. There are steps, processes, and loops we’ve fallen into as an industry around how payers, providers and third-parties interact. We need more collaborative venues where teams get together to eliminate waste and friction. To achieve this goal, payer and provider interactions need to become more digitized. Currently, there is still a large volume of interactions that require a high degree of manual intervention. When more payer and provider interactions are digitized, this will lead to the real-time adjudication of claims and more certainty by providers that they will be paid for the care they’ve delivered. Ultimately, more digital data exchanges between providers and payers can help reduce friction between the two parties and elicit greater transparency around reimbursement. This transparency will be passed on to patients in the form of a more streamlined, straightforward billing process and ultimately leads to more cost-effective healthcare.
Q: What is one topic or issue in which you’ve been investing time lately to better understand it?
SR: One topic that has been on my mind lately, is the vast potential that automation and AI bring to the revenue cycle. I truly feel that we are only beginning to scratch the surface of what is possible. As a technology-forward company, we are always investigating new technology trends and seeing what they can bring to our clients. Historically, healthcare as an industry has always been one step, or many steps, behind leading technology companies (think Apple, Google, Amazon, etc.). I truly believe that healthcare should be on the cutting edge of these emerging technologies. I can’t think of a better industry to bring automation and advanced technology to. The possibilities are endless – from system operations to patient satisfaction, to clinical outcomes and of course overall revenue cycle. I am excited about the future and the strides the industry has been making as of late.
Q: What contributes to better conversations between a health system’s financial and clinical leaders when it comes to the patient’s experience?
SR: Financial and clinical leaders need to work together and understand that the patient experience is not limited to clinical care — it encompasses the full spectrum of a patient’s interaction with a hospital or health system that often begins before the patient steps foot in a care facility and extends beyond discharge. With price transparency being at the forefront of patient’s minds, having the ability to predict whether patients will be able to pay or if they would benefit from a payment plan before they step foot into your facility could be a game-changer for your revenue cycle and for the patient’s overall experience. On top of that, having the ability to utilize emerging technologies to predict, whether a payer will dispute, deny or pay a claim and in what timeframe can bring a tremendous benefit to the financial and clinical leaders relationship so they can forecast with more accuracy and deploy resources more effectively, because you have a good idea of what is going to happen.
What contributes to better conversations between a health system’s financial and clinical leaders?
At Becker's 4th Annual CEO + CFO Roundtable, taking place November 2–5 in Chicago, more than 1,500 hospital and health system executives tackle decisions that determine whether organizations thrive or merely survive: protecting margins under cost pressure, choosing where to grow, renegotiating payer relationships, stabilizing the workforce and proving real ROI on technology. This is where leaders work through them together, face-to-face. Apply for complimentary registration now.
