Consider these five revenue cycle management goals and New Year’s resolutions for 2026

With the new calendar year comes deductible resets, new CPT codes, updates to payer policies and fee schedules, and new coverage for many patients. However, the New Year also brings opportunities to drive meaningful and lasting change within revenue cycle management departments that can enhance revenue and improve the patient experience. Setting clear resolutions is a good first step. That’s because New Year’s resolutions clarify the priorities of your medical practice, reset expectations, and support workforce stability and morale.

Following are five revenue cycle management goals to consider in 2026.

1. ‘We will increase the percentage of revenue secured before or at the time of service by [insert number] percent.’🔗

Why this resolution is important: With greater patient cost sharing and Medicaid churn on the horizon, medical practices must ensure financial conversations take place prior to services being rendered. An important step is verifying eligibility and providing pre-service estimates at the time of scheduling and again on the date of service. Full or partial point-of-service collections will be increasingly critical to prevent bad debt and meet overall revenue cycle management goals.

Metrics to consider when striving to meet revenue cycle management goals:

• Eligibility-related denial rate
• Percentage of visits with a documented financial discussion
• Point-of-service collection rate
  

2. ‘We will improve our clean claim rate by [insert number] percent.’
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Why this resolution is important: With AI-driven claim reviews, payers will continue to flag errors and deny claims quickly. Meeting revenue cycle management goals will require practices to strengthen prebill claim scrubs and ensure best-in-class medical coding services.

Metrics to consider when striving to meet revenue cycle management goals:

• Appeal overturn rate
• Clean claim rate
• Denial rate by root cause
  

3. ‘We will ensure our revenue cycle management technology is working for us—not against us.’🔗

Why this resolution is important: Far too often, medical practices stick with the same revenue cycle management technology vendor due to fear of change even to the detriment of their own revenue and compliance. However, the best revenue cycle management technology prevents leakage, accelerates cash, and reduces cost-to-collect—all critical elements of success. Make 2026 the year in which your medical practice takes a closer look at its revenue cycle management technology to determine whether it truly provides a financial and operational return on investment. If it doesn’t, make this the year of change so you can meet revenue cycle management goals.

Metrics to consider when striving to meet revenue cycle management goals:

• Claims worked per FTE
• Days in accounts receivable
• Timeliness of payer rule updates in the system
  

4. ‘We will make more data-informed decisions.’🔗

Why this resolution is important: With limited financial and operational resources, medical practices must choose wisely in terms of where they invest capital and focus time and attention. Data can help because it replaces opinions with evidence, makes technology and staffing decisions defensible, and promotes a culture of continuous improvement. Data also allows revenue cycle teams to predict potential problems (e.g., negative cash flow impacts or increased coding denials) and intervene earlier in the cycle to mitigate risk and promote revenue cycle management goals.

Metrics to consider when striving to meet revenue cycle management goals:

• Action rate on reported insights (i.e., whether and how quickly teams pursue action based on the data)
• Forecast accuracy (e.g., how closely projected cash or accounts receivable match reality or how closely projected payer or volume assumptions match reality)
• Percentage of revenue cycle decisions supported by documented data (as tracked through meeting notes, project charters, or improvement logs)
• Time to insight (i.e., how quickly teams can identify an issue after it becomes evident in the data)
  

5. ‘We will invest in our people—even if it means outsourcing all or a portion of our revenue cycle.’
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Why this resolution is important: With the advent of greater revenue cycle automation, human oversight is important. However, persistent workforce shortages and burnout may leave medical practices vulnerable to increased risk and rework. Investing in role-based training, staff development, and strategic outsource partnerships will play a critical role in meeting—and exceeding—revenue cycle management goals.

Metrics to consider when striving to meet revenue cycle management goals:

• Absenteeism rates
• Error rate by role
• Productivity per FTE
• Training hours per FTE
• Turnover rate
  

Making the right RCM technology part of your plan🔗

Setting clear resolutions allows revenue cycle management teams to address known weaknesses early, before small issues turn into sustained revenue loss. In a tighter margin environment, intentional revenue cycle management goals provide focus, accountability, and a roadmap for smarter decision-making throughout the year. Learn how Medusind can complement these efforts to set your medical practice up for success in the coming year.