A new year always brings new beginnings, but 2017 in particular represents big changes for America as a nation. And as we are always concerned about the state of healthcare, the ushering in of a new president and the promise of more than just tweaks to the existing healthcare system in this country, there is an extra level of uncertainty as to how it will all play out. President Elect Trump has promised to repeal the Affordable Care Act, even as Obamacare health plans are undergoing open enrollment as we speak.
By the Numbers
This doesn’t seem to be stopping the more than 2 million people who have chosen a plan via Healthcare.gov since the start of open enrollment, translating to 167,000 more plans selected than during this period last year, according to US News and World Report. Despite those numbers, the concern about healthcare looms. One of the big areas of uncertainty is how healthcare billing will be handled for practitioners. What can we expect to see when it comes to healthcare billing changes in 2017?
Healthcare IT
According to Healthcare IT News, there are two things all healthcare providers can count on starting next year: one, reimbursements will go down as they are getting paid less and less for every service they provide; and two, big advancements in data and IT are coming without which innovative change simply can’t happen. The future of healthcare can’t be boiled down to one single point; in fact, there is a much wider view that has to be taken into account, with challenges at every turn during this time of flux. Unfortunately, many healthcare organizations will find it hard to stay afloat, with perhaps as many closures and failures as successes. Health IT seems to be the center of change here, with those who use it better and faster rising to the top.
Patient Focus
Being an effective care provider means you have to change your way of thinking from tunnel-vision focused on a one-size-fits-all approach to medicine, to a customized view of patient care that is specifically tailored to the individual. The economy may get in the way of this progress, however. Nonetheless, with the explosion of the digital age in which patients today are accessing and monitoring their medical records, they’re taking more control of their health and wellness. The trick will be to manage that data and use it to fuel change in anything from patient management to more effective medical billing strategies.
Patient focus is the key, rather than focusing on the payer. Going forward, health care providers need to flesh out open-source collaboration, rising technologies, and universal exchange languages to result in a cohesive nationwide system. Only then will operating costs decrease, patient care quality improve, and practice revenues rise.
Contact Medical Healthcare Solutions
As a healthcare provider, you likely have many questions as to how medical billing will change for you next year. Call us at 800-762-9800 or fill out our online form to get a free billing analysis today. Rely on the expertise and experience of Medical Healthcare Solutions (MHS), backed by decades of medical billing experience and service to the healthcare community.
