Chapter 19: Daily Financial Practices

the amount of cash on hand for the purpose of petty cash is usually within the range of

$75 - $100

the number required by the CMS on claims for clinical diagnosis services is called

NPI national provider identifier

the best method of endorsing checks in the ambulatory care setting

a blank endorsement is signature only, danger is if it is lost or stolen someone else could cash the check

a patient encounter form is also called

a charge slip, a superbill

day sheet provides complete and up to date information

about accounts receivable status at a glance

generates financial information for the ambulatory care setting and is defined as a system of monitoring the financial status of a facility and the specific results of its activities

accounting

sum owed by a business for services or goods received

accounts payable

sum owed to a business for services or goods supplied

accounts receivable

the _____ figure shows how much is owed to the provider by all patients to dare allowing management to see the total outstanding balance at a glance

accounts receivable

total amount of money owed to the medical facility by patients is

accounts receivable

increases or decreases to a patient account not due to charges incurred or payments received

adjustments

a major disadvantage of day sheet is that

an error made in one place is going to carry through to all other forms

total practice management system advantages include

auto encounter form, calculates charges for monthly billing statements, created & updates patient account, adds new names to the list of patients, daily log, transfers data to produce insurance forms, lists checks received each day, auto ages accounts at each billing cycle and created billing statements

the one advantage to the ambulatory care setting that accepts credit/debit cards is that the monies for fees charged are usually

available within 24hrs

reasons why it is important to ensure that proper control is utilized when purchasing supplies and equipment

avoid purchasing unnecessary items, avoid duplication of items, provide system to pay only for what is ordered and received

as a noun, this term denotes "the amount owed" as a verb the term means "to verify posting accuracy"

balance

another means of ensuring that the accounts receivable is accurate for the previous month

bank statement

the actual daily recording of the accounts or transactions of the business is a major part of this accounting process

bookkeeping

if a check has been deposited and is now returned because of insufficient funds, it will be necessary to

call the bank that returned it and verify availability of funds so the check can then be redeposited

when a check must be guaranteed for the amount in which it is written a ___ is issued

cashiers check

medicare/medicaid are mandated to

charge every patient the same amount for similar services

rules to ensure that checks are properly written and recorded

confirm numeric and written amounts agree, check spelling, follow clinic procedure, check signed by authorized signer, confirm that check is payable to correct payee and current date is used

a ____ is hired to design a customized program although this can be more expensive than purchasing mass-produced software

consultant

travelers checks

convenient, safer than cash when traveling come in $20, $50 $100 require signature when used

decreases the balance due

credit

three reasons why adjustments may sometimes be made to a patients account

insurance payments, personal discounts write offs or any other subtractions for the account

features that may be a part of the checking account

interest paid, monthly fees, checking charges, atm access, after hours deposits, initial deposits and balance requirements, overdraft protection, fees for checks

bookkeeping

is actual daily recording of accounts or transactions of the business

accounting

is the monitoring of financial status and activities

a record of daily patient transactions used in conjunction with pegboard system

ledger

the advanced beneficiary notification form is used primarily for

medicare patients

adjustments may occur with patients who have

medicare/medicaid, blue cross and private health insurance

replaces all other identifiers used by providers for reimbursement and other transactions with private payers and the government

national provider identifier NPI

when making an adjustment intended to increase the balance, a ___ entry in parentheses is made to show that you reverse the unction when you balance

negative entry, add instead of subtract the amount

NCR

no carbon required

NSF stands for

nonsufficient funds

money market accounts

often pay a higher rate of interest may require a higher initial deposit and maintenance of a higher balance, useful when access to money is not needed frequently

on a patient account or ledger the credit column is

on the right and is used for entering payments

small cash sum kept on hand in the office for minor or unexpected expenses

petty cash

charges for some daily routine visits may be submitted to an insurance carrier and the clinic may not know

portion covered until it is received from the carrier

accounting function that describes the act of recording financial transactions into bookkeeping or accounting systems

posting

_____ forms used for payments on accounts usually are not customized with other than the name, address and phone number of the practice preprinted

receipt

information that is included on an encounter form includes

requested return visit, patient account number previous balance

reconciling the month-end sheet to the patient ledgers is accomplished by

adding all the open balances on the ledgers and verifying that the total agrees with the end-of-month accounts receivable balance on the last day sheet of the month

used to indicate any insurance payments, personal discounts or write offs or any other subtractions for the account that need to be recorded

adjustments

for medicaid patients a form officially known as ___ is the only legal means a clinic has to collect payment on charges not allowed by medicare

advanced beneficiary notice

the ledger is placed under the charge slip or encounter form in a pegboard system and

aligned before posting

voucher check

check with stub attached that can be used to indicate invoice dates and services

the ____ account is the primary account type the MA will use

checking

computerized patient account lists

clinic visits, procedures/codes, charges, payments, adjustments.

balance

column is at the far right and is used to record the difference between the debit and credit columns and shows any amount

credit

column is at the far right of the debit column and is used for entering payments

ways to track a patients balances

computerized financial systems, pegboard

____ is balanced to provide a complete picture of all patient financial activity for that day

day sheet

all financial transactions for professional services are posted on a

day sheet or daily ledger

the pegboard system consists of

day sheets, ledger cards, encounter forms, receipt forms

certified check

depositor's own check the bank has "certified" with the date and signature to indicate check is good for amount written

what should be done to verify that the correct items and quantities have been received

double check items and quantities received to what is listed on the copy of the purchase order

petty cash should be balanced

each day before closing

debit

entering charges and a brief description of services

how to establish and maintain a petty cash system

keep separate from cash drawer for patients payments. co-payments, do not use to pay bills or make large routine purchases. keep amount small 75-100 must be carefully maintained and balanced at the end of the day

the ____ of medical facilities use computers for bookkeeping

majority

in most practices there is a need to have cash available on a daily basis to

make change for a patient paying cash for services

restricting the use of a check should it be lost or stolen may be done through

special endorsement

a restrictive endorsement stamp is used to

stamp on the back of a check to signify "for deposits only"

when reconciling a bank statement

the checkbook entries should be checked against the bank statement

the parent responsible for payment if the child is not insured with a contracted insurance carrier

the guarantor

a refund on a patients account will usually occur when

the insurance carrier pays more than anticipated

the management of the business details of a practice usually becomes the responsibility of

the medical assisting staff

" checks and balances" when a mistake is caught immediately

the payer can stop payments on the missing check or credit or debit card slip and a new payment can be made

the most common methods of tracking a patients balance is

the pegboard system and computerized financial systems

what is an endorsement

transfer rights to whoever holds the check

six habits essential to creating and maintaining accurate paper financial records

use black/blue ink, neat and clear handwriting, align columns carefully, stay within columns, be careful with decimals, double-check math

cashiers check

used when a check must be guaranteed for amount in which it is written, check to verify acceptance policy

money order

usps, western union, purchased with cash and are similar to cashiers checks

in the pegboard system when the last day sheet for the month has been balanced, it is necessary to

verify that the month-end figures on the day sheet agree with patient accounts

the pegboard system of bookkeeping is sometimes called

write-it-once system