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Make AOBs part of your registration process

Case Management Weekly, September 28, 2005

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It's winter. An elderly man goes out to his car. He unlocks the door and falls down before he gets in, breaking his hip. Shortly after this accident, he undergoes hip surgery. The man is a Medicare beneficiary, but his auto insurer says that because he was getting into the car when he fell, it will cover him.

The hospital performing this surgery received $25,000 - 100% of billed charges for the procedure. The auto insurer covered the surgery and his entire stay.

Sound too good to be true? These situations can pay for themselves if you have the right process in place, says Gwen Parrish, CPAT, managed care coordinator at Southeastern Ohio Regional Medical Center in Cambridge, OH.

Facilities can assist their patients while protecting their own interests by obtaining a completed Assignment of Benefits (AOB) form from the patient.

When a patient presents for services for injuries related to an auto accident, the registration clerk should provide him or her with three forms, Parrish says.

1. A standard AOB: this is often the signed registration form.
2. An auto-accident specific AOB: this legally requires whoever is issuing payment to make the payment directly to the facility or at least include the facility name on the payment.
3. An accident information sheet: this explains the billing, procedure, requests auto insurance information, and provides a phone number if the patient has questions.

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