Recovering From COVID-19: How Practices Can Maintain the Revenue Cycle in 2021

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the American Hospital Association (AHA) estimates that hospitals and health systems have lost more than $202 billion from a drop in revenue, combined with COVID-19 expenses, during the four-month period from March to June 2020. Healthcare services expenditures also dropped 38% in April 2020, as compared to the previous year, and many practices are now contending more with patients who are unemployed or uninsured and unable to pay for doctor visits, specialty care and routine procedures. These numbers will undoubtedly rise, as nearly 27 million Americans could potentially become uninsured due to the pandemic.

Adjusting to new ways of operating during COVID-19 - and maintaining the revenue cycle all the while – is critical as the industry continues to navigate uncertainties about reimbursement for virtual care and increasing numbers of patients losing their jobs.