Exam 20: Patient Billing and Collection

When do most smaller practices send out their statements?

Adrian is a patient whose parents were killed in a skiing accident a few months ago. Adrian was involved in an automobile accident this morning. He refused ambulance transport and a friend brought him to your office because he needed only minor wound care. He turned 21 last week, so he is legally an adult. He tells you he has no insurance and doesn't know how he will pay for his care. Adrian might be a candidate for ____.

Free treatment for ________ cases must be undertaken carefully and is given at the physician's discretion.

A letter that has a friendly, "we want to help" tone and gives the patient options but makes it clear that the patient must take some sort of action, is most appropriately sent when the account is ____ days past due.

The person who has financial responsibility for a patient is known as the ________.

A written-contract account is ____.

The statute of ________ is the state law that sets a time limit on when someone can legally file a collection suit on a past-due account.

A characteristic of a mutual agreement is that ____.

When you ask Mrs. Redding how she would like to pay the $48 she owes for today's services, she hands you a credit card. When you look at the card, you realize that the card expired two months ago. Which of the following would be your best response to Mrs. Redding?

A statement is ____.

A credit ________ is a company that provides information about the creditworthiness of a person seeking credit.

Which of the following information about a patient should a medical assistant provide to the collection agency?

A(n) ________, or encounter form, includes the charges for services rendered on that day, a request for payment or insurance copayment, and all the information for submitting an insurance claim.

The most appropriate way to determine which parent has consent ability and payment responsibility for a minor child is to ____.

A collection letter containing stronger wording that asks the patient to specify when the amount will be paid and to contact the office to make payment arrangements may be sent when an account is ____ days past due.

When one or more people sue a company that wronged all of them the same way, they have filed a(n) ________ lawsuit.

If the physician allows the patient to pay for services over time, she is extending ________ to the patient.

Which of the following is an accurate statement about open-book accounts?

A federal Truth in Lending Statement, which is a written description of the agreed terms of payment, is also called a(n) ________ statement.

The money the medical practice must pay out to run the practice is called accounts ________.