Wiki Missed Appt's

[heffengirl321@yahoo.com]

Does anyone know the legal stand point for charging patients a missed appt fee? We have a sleep lab and we always call and confirm one to two days in advance. My questions is.. Can we legally charge these Patients a missed Appt fee and if so how much is the standard. Part 2 of this is.... what if it's a new patient and we haven't gotten the demographics from them and the financial responsibility agreement forms yet? We have no stafff available at that time of night to try and call and fill the spot so it's just loss revenue at this point and my Doctor would like to have something in place for this. Thank you in advance for any help.

 

[Melissa Harris CPC]

You can charge for a missed appointment. It is good practice to inform the patients of the policy by having them sign an agreement or have signs posted. We charge $25.00 for a missed follow up and $50.00 for a procedure follow up. However, I know that sleep centers here charge $150 for a no show. It is also good practice to obtain all the demographic information prior so you can implement this policy and verify insurance benefits.

Hope this helps

Melissa Harris, CPC
The Albany and Saratoga Centers for Pain Management