Held revenue: Keep it in check

Q. What should be the CMN held revenue for a typical month and what is the best way to manage this process? A. Your CMN held revenue should not exceed more than 10% to 20% of your company's current month's total revenue. If your held revenue is beyond this, you should consider implementing the following steps: Fax or mail? Faxing CMNs to doctors should be part of your standard practice. CMNs should only be mailed when the doctor refuses to accept faxes. In either case, due dates should be provided on the cover letter to reflect a sense of urgency. You should provide a due date of 48 hours for faxes, and one week for mailed CMNs. Stringent follow-up should occur when CMNs are not returned within three to four business days for faxes, and 10 to 11 business days for mail. Follow-up Your first follow-up should be a phone call to the doctor's office for a status check or an automatic fax stating “second request.” Ideally, follow-ups should be grouped together by doctor so that you are not calling the doctor multiple times in a single day. In determining your best course of action-phone call or fax follow-u-you should take into consideration the volume of CMNs and the doctors you are working with. If your volume is high for a particular doctor, an automatic second request fax may be the most appropriate option, because the doctor's office will tell you to resend it anyway. A second fax should also be sent if you are having difficulty getting through to the office. Consistently using a solid faxing and/or mailing system coupled with inside representatives making diligent follow-ups works well to keep held revenue totals in check.