Cerner to Launch New Patient Accounting Platform

Electronic health records (EHR) software giant, Cerner, recently announced their launch of a new patient accounting platform called RevElate. While not likely to be widely available until 2023, the company appears to be conducting some beta tests and gathering feedback from a few users of its current offerings. Let’s look at what customers can expect from this new platform.

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• Consolidation for enterprise-level healthcare facilities
• More data flexibility
• Better payment integrations
• Improved revenue cycle
• Replacement for Millennium and Soarian platforms

Consolidation for enterprise-level healthcare facilities

With Cerner RevElate, large healthcare networks can now use a single consolidated platform for cross-venue patient accounting. This allows healthcare providers to track patients and keep records and invoices together, no matter which branch of a provider they visit. For example, a patient who broke their arm might visit an emergency room, x-ray technician, and physical therapist. Even though these providers might not be in the same facility, they could share patient billing records and insurance information to simplify intake and claims processing. Because healthcare networks face issues with revenue clarity and complicated income cycles, the healthcare market is becoming more consolidated as providers who excel in these areas acquire those who struggle. In addition to connecting facilities that are already under a provider’s umbrella, RevElate should also simplify new acquisitions and mergers and facilitate growth. Also read: Optimizing Your Patient Portal for Maximum Engagement

More data flexibility

RevElate will offer a variety of integrations with other Cerner and third-party software to pull data from multiple sources. It also provides an open framework that supports workflows that start in Cerner products and move across different technologies. A billing workflow, for example, might need to pull medical data from the EHR, assign it to a patient in the CRM to get billing info, and then push that information to the invoicing portal.

Better payment integrations

In addition to pulling data from more sources, RevElate also integrates with more payment options, so patients can easily pay their bills. “We will be able to provide a more accurate claim initially to the payer, which means fewer denials and quicker turnaround for cash,” says Paul Weaver, system director of patient financial services for CoxHealth in the RevElate promotional video. It also includes upstream billing to help simplify payments to suppliers, allowing healthcare facilities to settle invoices quickly and improve relationships with vendors. Also read: How to Reduce Inventory and Keep Practitioners Stocked

Improved revenue cycle

With simplified workflows and more integrations, RevElate should improve the revenue cycle for healthcare facilities of all sizes. Users can build out a revenue cycle that fits their needs and integrate the third-party systems they need to complete it. In a statement to Fierce Healthcare, Brenna Quinn, SVP of enterprise market solutions for Cerner explains, “Essentially, we can bring forward the benefits of the type of outcomes you want to see in the back office — fewer manual touches with more automated tasks — but leveraging the power of upfront management of the revenue cycle right from the point of registration, through the coding process all the way through the backend.” Automated tasks can help healthcare providers improve billing accuracy, reduce operating costs, and provide invoices to their patients faster. Enterprise-level healthcare facilities are well-positioned to take advantage of RevElate because they typically have the IT and developer resources available to make use of the platform’s capabilities. These IT resources will likely be necessary for practices that need to connect RevElate to their third-party software through APIs. In the RevElate video on Cerner’s website, Jeff Sandene, chief financial officer for Charleston Area Medical Center says, “One of the advantages that Cerner brings to the table is their openness to have partnerships with other vendors that enhance the revenue cycle and not thinking that they have to own every component of the revenue cycle.”

Replacement for Millennium and Soarian platforms

Cerner customers currently using the Millennium and Soarian platforms will get a like-for-like replacement when RevElate becomes available. They won’t have any new licensing fees or professional service fees for implementation. In her statement to Fierce Healthcare, Quinn says, “RevElate is the culmination of a multiyear journey that brings the leverage of the two platforms, but enhances them with additional capabilities and converges them so we have a single go-forward patient accounting offering that is clinically driven.” Those already using these Cerner platforms will likely be able to switch to RevElate in 2023. If you don’t yet have an EHR system or are unhappy with your current software, use our EHR EMR Software Product Selection Tool to get a customized list of recommendations for your healthcare network. Read next: Cerner vs. Epic: Comparing The Biggest EHR Vendors

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