Consider this scenario: You set Track Patient Portion to NO on an insurance patient. It is the 25th of the month. You post $300 in charges and both Balance and Due Now go to $300. The patient has about 80% coverage and you send out the insurance, but you tell the patient you will bill him after his insurance has paid. Now 5 days later the first of the month rolls around and it’s time for you to send out your bills.  Since this patient has a positive Due Now ($300), a billing statement automatically generates, but this may not be what you want in this case since you’re waiting for an insurance payment. The Due Now is not accurately representing what you want the patient to pay Now.

Your answer to the Track Patient Portion question need not affect the way you do business.  For offices who want to keep closer track of the amount that the patient is responsible for, the Track Patient Portion question may be answered Yes when an account is opened.  That option will be discussed now.

Track Patient Portion - YES
When the Track Patient Portion question is answered Yes, there is a difference in the way account totals are kept.  As procedures are posted, the computer keeps track of the total charges with the Total Balance amount.  This is something the computer must do under any circumstances. The Total Balance amount is not affected by the Assignment Of Benefits question.  However, since we have made an arrangement with the patient to partially defer collection of a certain portion of the charges, the Due Now amount, which is the amount the patient is immediately concerned with, is handled differently.
When creating an account and the Track Patient Portion question is answered Yes, you will then be asked the Benefit Calculation question. Benefit Calculation is concerned with how the Due Now amount will be incremented.  The Benefit Calculation question may be answered as "Automatic" or "Manual".

Automatic Benefit Calculation
When you select Automatic Benefit Calculation the Due Now amount will be incremented automatically, according to the benefits that have been entered into the computer for this account.  As you post, you will see the computer increase the Due Now amount automatically.  The Due Now amount will represent the patient portion of the charges that are posted.  Aging will begin at the time of posting because the Due Now amount was increased at that time.  Aging is based on the Due Now amount, not the Total Balance. A full discussion on Automatic Benefit Calculation check out the Automatic Benefit Calculation section.

Note that several factors are involved with Automatic Benefit Calculation. You must mark Automatic on the Account Entry screen. The Benefit Plan (page 2) record for this account must have the benefits entered which include the maximum, deductible, and payment base (UCR or Schedule). You also must mark the Benefit Plan as Auto Benefit Ready. Each patient has their own personal maximum and deductible that must be entered.  This is seen on the Patient Entry screen, and also of the Charge Entry screen. Posting is simpler when the benefits are calculated automatically.  More explanation is required when the Due Now amount is to be calculated manually.  This will now be discussed.