What should the patient registration clerk do to ensure coverage for a surgical procedure?

Validating the patient's health insurance coverage is a crucial step to ensure that the surgical procedure will be covered by the patient's insurance plan. This process involves confirming that the patient's policy is active, determining what procedures are covered, and understanding any specific requirements or limitations associated with their policy. By validating coverage beforehand, the patient registration clerk helps prevent unexpected out-of-pocket expenses for the patient and ensures that the healthcare provider will receive appropriate payment for the services rendered.

This proactive measure can also involve checking for any pre-authorization requirements, which varies between insurers. Although tasks like preadmission clearance, utilization management, and posting charges are important parts of the administrative process, they do not address the initial and critical step of confirming that the patient has the necessary insurance coverage to proceed with the surgical procedure.