The Revenue Cycle Time Warp: Why Everything Old is New Again
It’s a jump to the left
And then a step to the right
Let’s face it. When it comes to revenue cycle management (RCM), it often seems like we are standing still. Or better put, maybe we are actually running in circles, expending a lot of time, money and energy to find ourselves continuously returning to a similar place. Are we in a revenue cycle time warp?
Which headline below is from 2017, and which is from 2024?
Increased claim denials cost hospitals as much as $3.5M, new report shows
Claims denials are costing hospitals nearly $20B per year
The answer – imagine if denials were only costing hospitals $3.5M in 2024! Since denials have gone from a nasty surprise to a full-blown horror story over the last decade, we can all easily surmise which one is the sequel.
The point is that when it comes to revenue cycle management, the issues aren’t new. They have been problems for years, and in many cases—like the impact of denials on hospitals—growing worse rather than better.
Look at any blog or whitepaper purporting to break down the top issues facing revenue cycle leaders in 2025 or offering ideas on how to “future-proof” your revenue cycle—the same thing. Many could have been written 5, 10 years ago, or just yesterday. Although the issues may have evolved some, they aren’t new issues. They have been problems for years. Why do we seem to be in a time warp?
When it comes down to it, healthcare has been waiting for AI, or some other advancement, to be the silver bullet that solves everything. What has become clear is that there is no silver bullet on the horizon. No single technology or advancement is going to magically fix the complexities of RCM. Success is within our hands.
So what does that mean?
It means we need to roll up our sleeves, break it down, and make sure we’ve mastered the fundamentals. We can’t afford to overlook basics like accurate documentation, timely claims submission, and proactive denial management.
Technology has evolved and can help. AI-driven analytics, automated workflows, and intelligent claims scrubbing are great tools. But they are just that, tools. At the core, RCM requires good people doing good work.
The path to success isn’t about waiting for the next big thing—it’s about getting really good at the fundamentals, leveraging technology where it makes sense, and investing in people who bring expertise and accountability to the table.
That’s where Revology comes in. We have a deep understanding of RCM and we know how to set up clients to better understand their RCM challenges by starting with the basics – which is easier said than done. At the core of this strategy is Auxo, Revology’s SaaS solution, which simplifies the insurance follow-up process and provides transparency with workforce management. Coupled with AI and gamification, Auxo helps healthcare organizations break through conventional barriers and drive a higher standard of revenue cycle performance.
By bringing together the power of automation with the expertise of skilled professionals (or good humans as we like to say), healthcare organizations can move beyond the time warp and begin to solve the seemingly unsolveable, by keeping operations running more smoothly, and driving financial success.