For Immediate Release
October 14, 2002
Patient Friendly Billing Project Commitment Grows
Vendor Task Force Formulates Future Initiatives
CHICAGO, October 14, 2002—Members of the Patient Friendly BillingSM project's Vendor Task Force met on September 6, 2002, in Chicago, Illinois, to begin discussions on how healthcare technology can support the goal of producing bills that are clear, correct, concise, and patient-friendly. The Vendor Task Force includes representatives from companies that design and install information systems for patient accounting systems and other financial communications.
“Information system vendors play an integral role in patient financial communication,” said HFMA President and CEO Richard L. Clarke, FHFMA, “and can make a significant contribution to simplifying and standardizing this process. They have a deep knowledge of the processes in question, because they work with clients with diverse needs and conditions.”
The Vendor Task Force will develop guidelines to help healthcare providers improve their billing and revenue cycle processes. This will likely take the form of reengineered billing processes to improve accuracy and reduce redundancy. They may also address the effective use of information technology for revenue cycle automation and standardization.
This meeting marks the initial step in the most recent phase of efforts to improve the communication of financial information to patients and their caregivers. Previous initiatives, which focused on hospitals and physician practices, have resulted in an outpouring of interest, questions, and shared practices from provider organizations and their partners in the healthcare billing process.
“The energy generated by the project is astounding,” Clarke commented. “The more people learn about this effort, the deeper their commitment to the goals grows. Everyone is frustrated by the complexity of patient bills, and the people who are part of the system are enthusiastic about taking steps toward positive change.”
For more information concerning the Patient Friendly Billing project, including case studies, educational sessions and guidelines log on to the project’s Web site.
About the Patient Friendly Billing Project
Established in 2000, the Patient Friendly Billing project began as a way to help hospital and health system leaders create a more patient-focused—and friendly—healthcare billing and collection process. The project has advanced into its second phase, where team members focus on examining the current patient accounting systems and investigating associated vendors who produce and distribute hospital financial communications in order to reach the projects main objective: to create clear, correct, concise, and patient-friendly bills. Each project participant strives to unite the patient accounting systems, bill-producing vendors and any other related dealer to produce comprehensible bills, as well as to provide funding for this ongoing effort.
About HFMA
Healthcare Financial Management Association (HFMA) is the nation’s leading personal membership organization for healthcare financial management professionals. HFMA brings perspective and clarity to the industry’s complex issues in order to prepare and educate its members— and most importantly, help them achieve professional success. Through instructive programs, cutting-edge publications and valuable partnerships, HFMA strengthens the future potential of not only individual careers, but also the organizations from which its members come.
HFMA members include nearly 32,000 healthcare financial management professionals employed by hospitals, integrated delivery systems, managed care organizations, ambulatory and long-term care facilities, physician practices, accounting and consulting firms and insurance companies. Members’ positions include chief executive officer, controller, patient accounts manager, accountant and consultant. With 56 years of solid success behind its name, HFMA currently has a national headquarters and 70 local chapters.
HFMA continually evaluates, interprets and translates the work of the government and industry policy makers; consequently, the association has transformed into an invaluable resource by providing expert insights and relevant approaches to current healthcare finance issues. HFMA’s educational and professional development programs, practical information and technical research and data provide members with essential tools and solutions. Members receive career-long support through the extensive networking opportunities, including but not limited to idea sharing among peers and mentoring relationships. HFMA remains the primary source members need to maintain the awareness that their professional contributions impact not only the lives of patients, but also the health of entire communities.
For additional information, visit HFMA’s Web site at http://www.hfma.org.
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