What does capitation mean in medical billing?

Published by Charlie Davidson on

What does capitation mean in medical billing?

Capitation is a fixed amount of money per patient per unit of time paid in advance to the physician for the delivery of health care services. Capitation rates are developed using local costs and average utilization of services and therefore can vary from one region of the country to another.

What is hospital capitation?

Capitation payments are payments agreed upon in a capitated contract by a health insurance company and a medical provider. They are fixed, pre-arranged monthly payments received by a physician, clinic, or hospital per patient enrolled in a health plan, or per capita.

How is capitation payment calculated?

Example: Say patient revenue in your practice is $500,000 per year. Next, figure a tentative capitation rate for your practice by multiplying your per-visit revenue by the number of visits per 1,000 enrollees. Then divide by 12 months to determine the per member per month (PMPM) capitation rate.

Is capitation effective or efficient?

Capitation Fee is a kind of healthcare payment system in which a physician or hospital is paid a fixed amount per patient for the agreed period by an insurer or physician. It is an effective alternative to Fee-for-Service (FFS) in certain situations.

How does capitation reimbursement work?

Capitation payment is a model of reimbursement in which the providers receive a fixed amount of money per patient. This is paid in advance, for a defined time, whether the member seeks care or not. Ideally, patients who have little utilization will naturally balance out with the patients who have higher utilization.

Is capitation a service fee?

Capitation and fee-for-service (FFS) are different modes of payment for healthcare providers. In capitation, doctors are paid a set amount for each patient they see, while FFS pays doctors according to what procedures are used to treat a patient.

How do you calculate per thousand members per year?

Similarly, annualized rates per 1,000 members were calculated by dividing overall utilization of a given service (e.g., inpatient days) by the total number of member years (i.e., the number of member months divided by 12) for the same time period and multiplying the result by 1,000.

How does Pmpm work?

Applies to a revenue or cost for each enrolled member each month. The number of units of something divided by member months. Often used to describe premiums or capitated payments to providers, but can also refer to the revenue or cost for each enrolled member each month.

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