Chamberlin Edmonds Expands Eligibility And Enrollment Offerings At University HealthSystem Consortium
New technology and functionality enable hospitals to reduce levels of uncompensated care and maximize reimbursements
Chamberlin Edmonds and Associates, Inc., a leading provider of comprehensive patient eligibility and enrollment services to hospitals, recently announced that it has expanded its service and technology offerings to long-time partner University HealthSystem Consortium (UHC), an alliance of academic medical centers and their affiliated hospitals representing approximately 90% of the nation's nonprofit academic medical centers. The expanded offerings will help identify coverage for the growing number of self-pay patients seen at UHC member organizations. Chamberlin Edmonds' eligibility specialists will serve as advocates for patients to secure coverage from various federal, state, and charity programs, including Medicare, Supplemental Security Income (SSI), and Social Security Disability Benefits (SSDIB).
UHC comprises 107 academic medical centers working to accelerate the achievement of clinical and operational excellence. Since 2008, Chamberlin Edmonds has provided eligibility and enrollment solutions to 27 UHC member hospitals.
"Our successful partnership with Chamberlin Edmonds continues to evolve as their expertise enables UHC members to increase coverage options available to patients and maximize reimbursements," says Dan Skiles, program director at UHC. "We continue to work with Chamberlin Edmonds because they are able to provide a range of solutions that can be custom-tailored to each organization's specific needs—including inpatient eligibility services, technology for the emergency department and outpatient areas, and back-end screening throughout the hospital."
UHC's strategic expansion with Chamberlin Edmonds is based on the strength and functionality of two new technology offerings: OnPoint and Advanced Payer Search (APS). OnPoint offers an easy-to-use, cost-effective approach for hospitals to identify coverage for the growing number of self-pay patients being seen in emergency department and outpatient settings. Hospitals are able to quickly assess patient eligibility at the time of service—often in 5 minutes or less—and ensure that qualified patients are enrolled in Medicaid and other applicable programs. APS similarly uses advanced editing and search technology to uncover Medicaid and Medicare benefits for patients whose expenses have previously been written off as bad debt or charity care.
"We are looking forward to exploring new opportunities with UHC and their members to help identify untapped benefits coverage," says Kirk Reid, executive vice president at Chamberlin Edmonds. "The 46 million individuals in the nation who lack health benefits but nevertheless deserve quality care are having a significant impact on the financial stability of many hospitals. A comprehensive approach to eligibility services can help counter this effect."
About Chamberlin Edmonds
Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, Chamberlin Edmonds serves as patient advocates and provides custom-tailored eligibility services to hospitals nationwide. Our comprehensive services examine the widest spectrum of uninsured and underinsured patients, including inpatient, outpatient, and emergency department cases. The advanced technology of our proprietary Web-based system is built on the unique experience and expertise of the most qualified eligibility and enrollment professionals in the industry—our people. Chamberlin Edmonds has more than 24 years of experience in eligibility services, with six regional offices in the U.S.
About UHC
The University HealthSystem Consortium, formed in 1984, is an alliance of 107 academic medical centers and 238 of their affiliated hospitals, representing approximately 90% of the nation's nonprofit academic medical centers. UHC offers its members specific programs and services to improve clinical, operational, financial, and patient safety performance. The mission of UHC is to advance knowledge, foster collaboration, and promote change to help members succeed in their respective markets.
SOURCE: Chamberlin Edmonds and Associates, Inc.