Annual Wellness Visits: 5 Strategies Help You Deal With Patients Who Refuse to Complete HRA Form

Why This Topic Matters

Incomplete wellness-visit documentation can affect whether the visit is treated as payable under Medicare and can force practices to consider alternate preventive-visit billing pathways. Understanding the documentation expectations and related administrative steps helps offices reduce denials, protect compliance, and streamline patient encounters.

Article Sections

1. Background

   Introduces the annual wellness visit context, the health risk assessment requirement, and the CMS policy setting discussed in the article.

2. 1. Send the patient a copy of the requirement.

   Covers the idea of providing patients written CMS guidance so they can review the requirement before the visit.

3. 2. Assign a staff member to assist the patient in completing the HRA.

   Discusses office workflow support, staff assistance, and related Medicare payment considerations tied to the annual wellness visit.

4. 3. Send it to the patient the day she makes her appointment.

   Describes using advance distribution of the form as a way to give patients more time to complete visit documentation.

5. 4. If all else fails, have the physician go over it with the patient during the visit.

   Addresses completing the assessment during the encounter and the role of physician review in the visit process.

6. 5. Explain to the patient that without the HRA, you'll be forced to bill a preventive medicine visit

   Explains the administrative consequences of incomplete annual wellness visit documentation and the resulting alternative billing pathway discussed in the article.