How Real-Time Provider Engagement Drives Revenue, Reduces Denials, and Accelerates Cash Flow

Executive Summary

Healthcare organizations are under pressure—from rising costs and labor shortages to increasingly complex payor rules. For diagnostic providers, these challenges are especially acute. But as margins shrink, one area gaining traction for its practical impact is real-time provider engagement.

Through tools like XiFin Empower Provider Portal, diagnostic providers are not only streamlining workflows—they’re improving revenue cycle performance in meaningful, measurable ways.

As evidenced by real customer results, the payoffs are dramatic—cutting unbillable claims by 68%, reducing provider response time from 120+ days to just 21, and more than doubling claim success rates when providers use the portal to submit billable diagnoses aligned with payor policy.

Why Real-Time Engagement Matters More Than Ever

Today’s volatile environment of tighter margins, complex payor rules, ongoing workforce shortages, and rising costs is pushing healthcare providers to their limits. Relying on their billing staffs and manual follow up with providers to clean up billing issues can take days or weeks to resolve, leading not delayed claims, higher denial rates, and increased staff burden.

To protect revenue and stay ahead, diagnostic providers must engage ordering or referring clinicians in real time and automate wherever possible.

What Real-World Success Looks Like: Provider Portals That Deliver Results

Two organizations using the Empower Provider Portal—MD Now and BioReference Health (part of OPKO Health)—offer a glimpse into what’s possible when provider engagement becomes proactive.

MD Now: Tackling Errors at the Source

MD Now, a Florida-based urgent care network with more than 90 locations, used to face over 10,000 billing errors each month. Through the Empower Provider Portal, MD Now gave physician offices and their staff direct access to resolve issues in real time—eliminating repetitive manual work. Additionally, MD Now found it was able to recognize error trends earlier than before and implement preventive measures to stop additional errors from happening.

The results:

• Billing errors dropped from 10,000 to just 145 per month, a better than 98% reduction in errors
• Efficiency improved without increasing headcount

Why it matters: The errors are fixed by the providers who have the correct information, requiring little or no intervention by MD Now staff. That means greater efficiencies while achieving fewer resubmissions, faster claims, and cleaner revenue flow.

BioReference Health: Resolution From 120 Days to 21

BioReference Health, one of the largest full-service specialty laboratories in the U.S., was struggling with a 120+ day resolution time for claims—largely due to slow, manual processes. After rolling out the provider portal and encouraging client adoption, the difference was dramatic.

The results:

• Claim resolution time shrank from over 120 days to just 21, an over 82% reduction in time
• Unbillable claims dropped from 29.1% to 9.2%, a 68.4% reduction
• Claim success rate more than doubled—from 30% to 67%—when providers used the portal to submit billable diagnoses aligned with payor policy, improving reimbursement outcomes.

Why it matters: Automated engagement improved speed, accuracy, and ultimately, revenue.

Not Just Automation—Acceleration

The shift toward real-time engagement isn’t about replacing staff or eliminating human touch—it’s about reducing manual busywork and enabling teams to focus on higher-value tasks.

Instead of sorting through faxes, phone calls, or spreadsheets, staff can use the portal to submit corrections and documentation instantly and securely. This leads to:

• Fewer follow-ups
• Faster claims
• Better use of diagnostic provider staff time
• Better preparation for payor audits. While audit prep isn’t the primary goal, real-time document capture helps labs stay compliant. Providers can securely upload required documents—clinical notes, prior auths, supporting materials—so diagnostic providers aren’t scrambling when payors come calling.

What Makes the Empower Provider Portal Drive These Outcomes?

XiFin’s Empower Provider Portal helps healthcare organizations streamline billing and boost financial performance with:

• Real-Time Error Resolution

  Fix issues as they arise—not weeks later

• Built-In Payor Policy Guidance

  Reduce denials with embedded payor rules and validation logic

• Secure Document Uploads

  Capture necessary documentation for billing, appeals, and audits

• Integrated Payment Options

  Accept ACH, credit card, and Quick Pay from providers

• Single Sign-On (SSO)

  Make access seamless by embedding the portal in provider workflows

• Patient Responsibility Estimators

  Help staff give patients financial clarity up front

Getting Started: Lessons from the Field

Implementing a provider portal can be a big lift—but XiFin customers have learned what drives success:

• Start with Strategic Customers – Launch with customers willing to engage and give feedback
• Get Executive Buy-In Early – C-Suite support is critical for long-term success
• Track Usage Weekly – Monitor engagement and retrain when staff changes occur
• Show the ROI – Tie usage to faster payments and cleaner revenue—it’s an easy case to make

Looking Ahead

XiFin continues to enhance the Empower Provider Portal, with an eye on intuitive workflows and easier provider onboarding. The vision? Engagement that’s frictionless—and even more financially impactful.

Final Thoughts

Manual follow-up, billing delays, and preventable denials don’t have to be a given. Real-time provider engagement and automation gives diagnostic providers a way to protect revenue, improve efficiency, and strengthen relationships with ordering clinicians.

When technology removes friction, results follow.

Ready to see what provider engagement could do for your organization?

Schedule a demo or Download the XiFin Empower Provider Portal Overview