First determine if a prospective or retrospective audit is best. Medical offices that don't conduct regular internal chart audits are asking for trouble, because internal audits internal audits are a key tool in helping you improve your billing accuracy and increase your overall profitability. Further, internal audits can reduce billing mistakes that may result in a payer audit. Internal chart audits provide practices with a snapshot of documentation, coding and billing accuracy. They allow you to identify areas where practice inefficiencies may be delaying payment or allowing for missed charges. Chart audits also help you keep your practice in line with CMS and private payer documentation and coding guidelines. Another plus: Consequences: Internal chart audits are serious business. But how can you decide: Read on for answers to the above questions from a panel of internal chart audit experts. Get to Know the Audit Types Basically, there are two types of internal chart audits: Which works best? Pros: Cons: On the other hand, the retrospective chart audit does not delay billing, and the audit process can proceed more quickly because the entire payment process is completed before the beginning of the audit. Best bet: Set a Twice-a-Year Auditing Goal The frequency of your audits will depend on the size and type of your practice. However, the more often you can audit, the cleaner your claims will be, so experts recommend frequent audits. Larger offices may have resources to conduct audits on a continual basis with different areas of focus throughout the year. Smaller offices may have the resources to conduct monthly or quarterly audits. In a nutshell: And when deciding on audit frequency, consider the amount of resources the practice can devote to the audit while simultaneously conducting day-to-day office business. Focus Audit on Commonly Billed Services Your internal chart audit should deal chiefly with procedures and services that your office provides every day, experts say. Example: Most offices should concentrate on their evaluation and management code levels during an audit, because E/M leveling is always looked at carefully by many payers. However, if your office does more procedures or lab services, you should concentrate your audit efforts there. Try this: This provides information on those services that have been identified as potential areas of fraud or abuse.