Charge capture automation for revenue cycle teams.
Charge capture automation reads clinical documentation, surgical schedules, and procedure logs to identify billable services that did not make it to the billing queue. Missed charges average 1-3% of net patient service revenue at most hospital and physician groups (HFMA). At scale, that is millions per year.
How charge capture automation works in revenue cycle.
Charge capture is the silent revenue leak. Coders code what they see in front of them. Billers bill what coders coded. Nobody actively hunts for the procedures that happened in the OR but never made it onto a claim. Charge capture automation does that hunting, comparing clinical activity records against billed claims and flagging the gaps.
How charge capture automation actually works
Charge capture platforms ingest three data feeds: (1) the OR schedule and case logs, (2) the EHR procedure and order records, (3) the billing system claim feed. The platform reconciles activity against billing and surfaces unbilled procedures, undercoded encounters, and missed supply charges. AI scoring prioritizes the highest-dollar gaps for human review.
Where it works well
Hospital operating rooms (complex case mix, multiple billable components per case) and outpatient surgical centers see the highest gap recovery. ED facility fees, inpatient ancillary services (IV starts, observation hours), and infusion drug billing all show consistent recovery. ASC supply chargemaster reconciliation alone can recover 1-2% of net revenue at most surgical centers.
Where it struggles
Pure cognitive specialties (primary care, psychiatry talk therapy) have low charge capture leakage because the billable event is the visit itself. ABA shows leakage primarily through missed authorization units, not missed CPT codes.
How to evaluate charge capture vendors
Two questions: (1) What is your average net recovery per case at a hospital with our service mix and case volume? (Get specifics, not generic case studies). (2) How does your platform handle our specific EHR? (Epic, Cerner, Meditech, Allscripts all have different export structures. Some vendors are stronger on some EHRs).
How ASP-RCM is structured differently
Our charge capture review runs as a discipline of the monthly close, not a separate vendor tool. We reconcile case logs against claims for every client every month. Findings go into the next-month coder briefing, so the same gap does not repeat. Pure-play charge capture vendors find the gap; we find the gap and close the workflow that created it.
Frequently asked questions: charge capture automation.
How charge capture automation actually works
Charge capture platforms ingest three data feeds: (1) the OR schedule and case logs, (2) the EHR procedure and order records, (3) the billing system claim feed. The platform reconciles activity against billing and surfaces unbilled procedures, undercoded encounters, and missed supply charges. AI scoring prioritizes the highest-dollar gaps for human review.
Where it works well
Hospital operating rooms (complex case mix, multiple billable components per case) and outpatient surgical centers see the highest gap recovery. ED facility fees, inpatient ancillary services (IV starts, observation hours), and infusion drug billing all show consistent recovery. ASC supply chargemaster reconciliation alone can recover 1-2% of net revenue at most surgical centers.
Where it struggles
Pure cognitive specialties (primary care, psychiatry talk therapy) have low charge capture leakage because the billable event is the visit itself. ABA shows leakage primarily through missed authorization units, not missed CPT codes.
How to evaluate charge capture vendors
Two questions: (1) What is your average net recovery per case at a hospital with our service mix and case volume? (Get specifics, not generic case studies). (2) How does your platform handle our specific EHR? (Epic, Cerner, Meditech, Allscripts all have different export structures. Some vendors are stronger on some EHRs).
Does ASP-RCM offer charge capture automation?
Yes. ASP-RCM Solutions delivers charge capture automation as part of a full revenue cycle service, with senior partners on every account and a BHCOE channel partnership in the ABA segment. Request a free 30-day RCM audit.