CHAA Patient Financial Counseling and Collections Flashcards
6 cards from real CHAA practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 6 CHAA Patient Financial Counseling and Collections flashcards as text
What does 'propensity to pay' mean in patient access financial counseling?
Answer: A scoring method that predicts a patient's likelihood and ability to pay their balance
Propensity-to-pay scoring uses demographic and financial data to predict how likely a patient is to pay their balance, helping staff prioritize collection and counseling efforts.
A patient who is uninsured and below 200% of the Federal Poverty Level should first be screened for which program?
Answer: Medicaid
Medicaid is the primary government program for low-income individuals; eligibility screening should occur before applying charity care discounts.
What is the Federal Poverty Level (FPL) used for in patient financial counseling?
Answer: Determining eligibility thresholds for Medicaid, CHIP, and charity care programs
The FPL is a measure of income issued annually by HHS and used as a benchmark to determine eligibility for government assistance and hospital charity care programs.
Which of the following is an example of an internal collection tool used by patient access staff?
Answer: Collecting estimated patient liability at time of registration using upfront payment tools
Point-of-service collection of estimated patient liability is an internal revenue cycle tool that reduces downstream collection costs and improves cash flow.
What is the significance of obtaining a valid credit card authorization at registration?
Answer: It secures patient payment information to facilitate collection of remaining balances after insurance adjudicates
A stored credit card authorization allows the facility to collect patient balance-due amounts after the claim is processed, reducing bad debt and manual collection follow-up.
Which of the following actions would be considered a violation when collecting patient financial information?
Answer: Disclosing a patient's financial information to unauthorized third parties
Sharing a patient's financial or health information with unauthorized individuals violates HIPAA and patient privacy rights, regardless of the context.