2024 Healthcare Revenue Cycle Management and Payment Trends

Many healthcare organizations have faced challenges in 2023, from industry-wide staffing shortages to adopting telehealth to keeping up with digitized healthcare. As the year comes to a close, your healthcare facility can look to emerging solutions to stay ahead of the curve in 2024. Healthcare data analytics offer so much more than transparency into your expenses.

Today, it plays a vital role in your facility’s revenue cycle management (RCM) framework. Thanks to ever-evolving technology, healthcare facilities can transform their processes to improve accessibility and efficiency more than ever. Streamlining your practice with a unified patient solution can help build digital engagement, generate more revenue and create better patient journeys.

What Healthcare Practices Can Expect in 2024

Efficient revenue cycle management can significantly improve clinical operations and financial viability within your practice. Here are some key 2024 healthcare trends to look out for that you can implement in your facility.

1. Increased Use of Artificial Intelligence and Engagement Intelligence

Technological advancements, such as artificial intelligence, have revolutionized revenue cycle management in healthcare. Healthcare facilities are implementing automation to streamline medical billing workflows, patient registration and claims submissions to enhance revenue integrity. Real-time digital eligibility verification helps providers ensure correct patient information at check-in.

Engagement intelligence is another top trend to watch in the upcoming year. Staying on top of this digital trend can help practices boost patient satisfaction and drive more revenue. For example, engagement intelligence can save patient preferences for when and how they wish to communicate with providers, optimizing their overall experience.

2. Heightened Focus on Patient Financial Experience

Today, as patients are responsible for an increased portion for their medical expenses, they expect a more convenient, efficient and transparent billing experience. Providers who utilize engagement intelligence solutions can improve payment processes in several ways. Offering a variety of patient payment options, simplifying the payment process and implementing mobile pay are a few examples.

Payment plans and flexible pay options also make it easier for patients to pay their bills and for providers to increase revenue. In 2024, healthcare facilities can now combine these efficient solutions in one cohesive online portal. Online payment tools give patients more control in an easily accessible format.

Providers who cater to this amplified focus on the patient’s financial experience have a positive impact on revenue and satisfaction.

3. The Need for Improved Patient Access

An important component of healthcare RCM is improving efficiency and convenience for patients. Prioritizing the patient experience requires streamlining processes from the moment they schedule their appointment to the moment they receive their bill. In 2024, better digital accessibility will help staff improve operational efficiency without compromising patient happiness.

For instance, using a unified, end-to-end platform that enables patients to easily submit intake forms and engage with providers can elevate patient satisfaction and catalyze revenue growth.

4. Growing Importance of Healthcare Data Analytics

Providers can take advantage of data analytics to identify areas of improvement in their existing RCM processes.

On the operational end, it empowers healthcare facilities to make better-informed financial decisions. Leveraging data-driven insights can optimize several aspects of RCM, including healthcare revenue recovery strategies. On the patient experience end, data analytic tools enable providers to enhance the patient experience based on satisfaction surveys and responses.

Using healthcare data analytics, providers may also identify trends in their financial performance and track revenue growth.

How to Improve 2024 Revenue Cycle Management

If you’re already preparing potential solutions and improvements for 2024, you’re on the right track. Here are some tips for optimizing your bottom line with healthcare RCM technology.

1. Outsource RCM Solutions

A poor revenue cycle management strategy results in lost revenue. Because your top priority is patient and staff care, you may find that RCM has taken a back seat. Outsourcing medical billing and other essential services to a third-party professional can help you regain control and lost revenue. Moreover, outsourcing reduces the workload on your staff by allowing you to leverage the vendor’s expertise and assets.

As a result, your healthcare facility can eliminate time-consuming manual processes and improve payment collection, by prioritizing strategic Revenue Cycle Management with a trusted partner.

2. Adopt New Technology Advancements

Current and future technological innovation will continue to transform healthcare to help organizations implement solutions that help patients gain control over their health management.

As such, providers will face new opportunities to increase their capabilities and provide higher-quality care to patients. However, some facilities may hesitate to embrace new digital technologies due to training and implementation barriers. Unified patient solutions provide ease of use as they seamlessly integrate into existing systems, including various electronic health records and health information systems.

As opposed to learning a completely new system, your facility benefits from multi-channel integration to support administrative and patient engagement. Alternatively, leveraging automation to reduce repetitive manual processes can help your organization deliver more efficient, patient-centered care. Utilizing such technology can accelerate and improve RCM throughout the entire patient journey.

3. Optimize Patient Intake and Insurance Eligibility

These digital patient access solutions support effective communication and ease of use throughout the entire patient journey — from patient intake to payment. These personalized experiences can lead to an enhanced facility reputation, improved retention and increased revenue.

Using technology will enable your staff to verify patients’ insurance eligibility to avoid time-consuming claims rejections and denials. Automatic insurance verification also eliminates manually processing billing paperwork. This leaves your staff more time to focus on patient-orientated tasks and reduces the likelihood of human error in medical billing.

Millennia Solutions Can Help Position Your Practice or Health System for Success

Adopting an all-encompassing solution to address your facility’s non-clinical tasks can help your practice stay agile in the new year. At Millennia, it’s our goal to help providers build digital engagement, increase revenue and enhance patient journeys. Our integrated software solutions create a connected ecosystem that boosts efficiency by streamlining billing, scheduling and communication. Millennia’s integrated software solutions helped St. Clair Hospital reduce its patient wait times to near zero and increase patient satisfaction to over 98%.

With Millennia Complete, your practice will benefit from both pre-arrival and post-visit solutions to improve patient experience and increase your patient payment revenue. 

To get started, request a consultation with us today.