Accounts Receivable Recovery
The money in your 90+ bucket is still collectable. Most of it just needs someone to make the calls.
Aged A/R is the clearest example of revenue that is already earned and simply not collected. The work was done, the claim was filed, and then it stalled. Nobody decided to write it off. It just aged.
Recovery work is unglamorous. It is payer portals, hold music, reference numbers and follow-up dates. It does not compete well against today’s claims for your staff’s attention, which is exactly why it is worth handing to a team whose only job it is.
The problem
Where this usually goes wrong
New claims always win
Your biller has a finite day. Today’s submissions are urgent and visible. A claim from four months ago is neither, so it keeps sliding.
The buckets compound
A claim in the 60 day bucket is straightforward. The same claim at 180 days needs research, may need an appeal, and may be past filing entirely.
Write-offs hide the problem
Writing off aged A/R cleans the report and buries the cause. Next quarter the same thing happens, and there is no record of why.
What is included
- Full A/R aging analysis by bucket, payer and provider
- Claim-by-claim status research through payer portals and calls
- Corrected claims and appeals where the claim is still workable
- Timely filing assessment so effort goes where recovery is possible
- Small-balance strategy so low-value claims are not worked at a loss
- Patient balance follow-up and payment plan setup
- Credit balance and overpayment review
- Documented write-off recommendations for what is genuinely unrecoverable
- Weekly recovery reporting during the cleanup phase
How it runs
Our process
- 1
Aging analysis
We pull your full A/R and sort it by bucket, payer and dollar value. Before any calls are made you get a picture of what is there and a realistic view of what is recoverable.
- 2
Triage by recoverability
Claims are split into workable, needs-appeal, and past-filing. Effort goes to the first two. Working a claim that cannot be paid is a cost, not an activity.
- 3
Work the queue
Highest-value and closest-to-deadline first. Every claim gets a status, an action and a follow-up date. Nothing goes back in the pile untouched.
- 4
Escalate
Claims that stall at the payer get escalated through provider relations rather than re-entering the same queue. Some claims only move when someone pushes.
- 5
Close out and hand back
You get a final report: recovered, still pending, and recommended write-offs with the reason for each. Clean A/R and a documented trail.
Questions we get asked
How far back is A/R worth working?
It depends on payer timely filing limits, which range from 90 days to 12 months from date of service. We assess your aging against each payer’s limit and tell you what is realistically recoverable before we start.
How is A/R recovery priced?
Usually a percentage of what is actually recovered, so the cost tracks the result. For ongoing A/R management as part of full RCM it is included in the standard rate.
How long does a cleanup take?
Most cleanups run 60 to 120 days depending on volume. Recovery is front-loaded, so the largest share of the money typically comes in during the first six weeks.
Will you work small balances?
Selectively. Below a threshold the cost of working a claim exceeds its value. We agree that threshold with you up front rather than quietly working or quietly ignoring them.
What about patient balances?
Included. Statements, payment plans and follow-up calls. Patient responsibility is a growing share of A/R as deductibles rise, and it is often the least-worked part of the aging report.
What happens after the cleanup?
Either we hand it back clean with a written summary, or we keep A/R on a fixed follow-up cycle as part of ongoing RCM so it does not rebuild.
See what your practice is leaving on the table.
We look at 90 days of your claims data and tell you what is recoverable. No cost, no obligation, BAA signed before anything changes hands.
- Recoverable dollars in your aged A/R, as a number
- Denials grouped by root cause, ranked by value
- A written summary you keep either way
Prefer to talk? (301) 786-0552
Or email info@asesormd.com