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The Tarboro Clinic is located in the historic town of Tarboro, North Carolina. With 20
physicians and caregivers, this multi-specialty group filed all of its claims through a
large electronic clearinghouse – until problems appeared in October of 2003.
“Our cash flow dropped sharply after the HIPAA deadline,” noted Kathy Williams, the
Clinic’s IT manager. “Claims we sent to the clearinghouse simply vanished. Payers told
us they hadn’t arrived.”
As the backlog of delayed and unpaid claims rose to more than $500,000, Tarboro Clinic
management became concerned. “The delays simply continued, month after month,”
said Williams.
Problems mount nationwide
Tarboro’s story is common. Following the October, 2003 deadline for compliance with
HIPAA transaction standards, claim processing problems mounted nationwide. Providers
became increasingly concerned with lost claims, incomplete transactions and lack of
connectivity.
Direct solution: Post-N-Track
As spring came to North Carolina, claim processing delays at Tarboro Clinic continued
to be a key problem. One payer, CIGNA Healthcare™, offered a solution: direct claim
submission via the Post-N-Track system – offered free of charge to providers like Tarboro.
Williams agreed to try the new system; the Post-N-Track software link was quickly installed,
and Tarboro Clinic began to send claims directly to CIGNA – avoiding the clearinghouse. Williams is very pleased with the results:
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