Substance use recovery, mental health, and behavioral health providers encounter unique obstacles when it comes to digital accounting, financial tracking, and reporting. While we can’t provide advice on accounting software and practices for your agency, we can assist you in understanding how to use your EHR software to simplify the tracking and reporting of your organization’s finances.
Your Billing Module
You won’t be surprised to read that your billing module is one of the most important tools to track your finances. Your EHR should be able to efficiently generate bills, support insurance claims, offer payment processing, and claims management. An efficient billing module ensures that all revenue due to your facility is captured, accounted for, and correctly processed.
Your EHR must offer a transparent billing system. It should allow you to easily access all necessary information, such as dates, payer and client balance, and service status. It’s important to have the ability to track your billing cycle’s history, including re-processing history, as this is where discrepancies may be identified. Some EHRs even provide built-in auditing tools.
Additionally, ensure that your billing module is fully integrated. This will help providers minimize redundancies and errors, as all data will be directly extracted from appointments and documentation. Features like invoices and payment processing not only enable you to generate revenue but also allow you to keep track of important aspects like adjudication.
Financial Reporting Tools
Your EHR must include data analytical tools that gather, organize, and present financial data. They provide valuable information on the income and expenditure of the agency. Financial reporting tools enable easy access to important financial metrics such as accounts receivable, revenue by payer, client volume, and service types.
Your financial reporting tools help you track KPIs more efficiently, which can help you verify accounting books match your financial reporting and vice-versa. You can also use these reporting tools to match your accounting goals and communicate financial goals across different departments.
Leverage your dashboards! Some EHRs, like EchoVantage, include fiscal overviews that help you hone in on your agency’s financial performance and areas of improvement.
Accounts Receivable and Payable Management
Your EHR should have a module for managing accounts receivable and payable. It should enable the setting of credit limits for client accounts, prompt alert systems for unpaid balances, and automated account reconciliation. Payment processing for services rendered should also be a part of this module.
General Ledger and Audit Trails
To ensure accountability and compliance with regulations, your EHR should capture, store, and organize all financial data pertaining to the services you provide. The general ledger should provide a comprehensive view of the facility’s financial transactions and facilitate the production of accurate financial statements such as balance sheets and income statements. Audit trails should also be included to provide a clear record of all financial activities.
Ensure that your auditing tools are equipped with helpful filters! Otherwise, you might encounter difficulties while sifting through extensive data pages that are challenging to decipher when searching for any modifications or updates.
By using an EHR with these tools, you can make sure your billing and accounting processes are closely linked to obtain comprehensive financial data that will help your agency thrive. Even if your EHR doesn’t fully integrate with your accounting software, using these tools effectively can help you manage your finances more transparently and efficiently.
Therapy Brands offers software solutions that give you a panoramic view of your practice’s financial metrics 24/7, with quick-to-act insights. Let’s schedule a discovery call to explore how we can help you effectively manage and boost your revenue.
