Administrative Simplification in Washington State

In collaboration with Washington state health plans, public payers, hospitals, practices and public policy makers OneHeathPort is working hard in the following four areas to help simplify health care administration in Washington state:

Technology services: One of the simplest ways to reduce administrative waste is to stop using paper and get off the telephone. Whenever possible use online services and other electronic systems to transact business with your trading partners and finds answers to the questions you have. OneHealthPort offers three technology services to help you save time by avoiding the telephone.

• Single sign on to the health plan web sites that answer questions about eligibility, benefits, claims status and other important issues. If you already have a OneHealthPort digital ID, save this link to the health plan sites. If you don't yet have a OneHealthPort digital ID go to Registration to get one now, it's FREE.
  
• A free browser based tool to help you edit and submit claims to payers online. If you don't have an existing clearinghouse relationship, our partner Office Ally offers an easy way to submit claims online. No need to buy an expensive system, all you need is a computer and an internet connection. Learn more about Office Ally.

Patient Payment tools

• Worksmart developed a Patient Payment Library with a collection of documents, videos and workflow tools to help you and your organization review your patient payment collection workflows and look for ways to improve time and money management. This Library requires a OneHealthPort login.
• WithinReach provides families and health care providers with One Click – One Call access to state-sponsored health insurance, food assistance and local resources.
• A new online service to help you manage payments from patients. The HPM system from our partner US Bank helps you collect and secure patient payments using credit cards, debit cards and checks. It also allows you to check eligibility, estimate patient cost share and set up patient financing. HPM works no matter where you bank. Learn more about how to increase your patient collections.

Washington Senate Bill 5346 - In 2009 the Washington state legislature passed SB 5346, a bill to help simplify health care administration. The bill calls on the Office of the Insurance Commissioner (OIC) to appoint a private sector organization to lead implementation of the bill. The OIC has designated the Washington Healthcare Forum and OneHealthPort to serve in this capacity. OneHealthPort and the Forum have delegated his important work to the new WorkSMART Institute. Learn more about WorkSMART.

Best Practice Recommendations - Local payers and providers are working with OneHealthPort to identify "Best Practice Recommendations" (BPR) in a number of areas. BPRs define a better way to get things done that's pragmatic and works for everyone. Rather than standardize the current work flow, BPRs aim to move the industry toward the Best Practices for working together. Some BPRs are addressed in SB 5346 some are not. However, all BPRs reflect a standard that participating payers and providers are committed to adopt.

Policies and Guidelines - There are some areas where a clearly defined Best Practice is not available or relevant but there is an interest in improving or standardizing work between plans and providers. OneHealthPort hosts a library of policies and guidelines that indicate how plans and providers can work together more efficiently.