MHA 702 – HEALTHCARE FINANCE AND
ACCOUNTING: TEST 7 – 2026/2027 UPDATED
EDITION - Graduate-Level Financial Assessment
with Complete Solutions & Healthcare-Specific
Rationales
💰 SECTION 1: REVENUE CYCLE MANAGEMENT – 9 Items
Q1 (Multiple Choice): In the healthcare revenue cycle, which step occurs immediately
after patient registration and insurance verification?
A. Charge capture
B. Claim submission
C. Payment posting
D. Utilization review
Correct Answer: A. Charge capture
Rationale: The revenue cycle sequence:
1. Preregistration/Registration → 2. Insurance verification/eligibility → 3. Charge
capture (documenting services/procedures) → 4. Coding (ICD-10, CPT, HCPCS)
→ 5. Claim submission → 6. Payment posting → 7. Denial management → 8.
Patient billing/collections
❌ B: Claim submission occurs after coding.
❌ C: Payment posting occurs after claim adjudication.
,❌ D: Utilization review occurs concurrently with care delivery, not as immediate next
step.
Graduate-Level Insight: Understanding revenue cycle sequence is critical for identifying
bottlenecks and improving cash flow. Charge capture errors (missed charges, incorrect
codes) are a leading cause of revenue leakage.
Q2 (Multiple Choice): A hospital's net days in accounts receivable (A/R) is 62 days. The
industry benchmark is 45-50 days. Which action would most directly improve this
metric?
A. Increase prices for self-pay patients
B. Accelerate claim submission and follow-up on unpaid claims
C. Write off more bad debt
D. Increase charity care write-offs
Correct Answer: B. Accelerate claim submission and follow-up on unpaid claims
Rationale: Net days in A/R measures the average number of days it takes to collect
payment after a service is provided. High days in A/R indicates slow collections. Direct
interventions include:
● Faster claim submission (reducing lag time)
● Aggressive follow-up on unpaid claims
● Clearing claim edits/errors quickly
● Addressing denials promptly
❌ A: Price increases affect revenue per service, not collection speed.
❌ C: Writing off bad debt removes uncollectible accounts from A/R but does not
❌ D: Charity care adjustments reduce revenue but do not accelerate collections.
improve collection speed.
, Q3 (SATA): Which of the following are common causes of claim denials in healthcare?
(Select all that apply.)
A. Incorrect patient demographic information
B. Missing or invalid CPT/ICD-10 codes
C. Service not covered by patient's insurance
D. Timely filing limits exceeded
E. High patient satisfaction scores
Correct Answers: A, B, C, D
✅
Rationale:
✅
A: Incorrect demographics lead to claim rejection or denial.
B: Coding errors (mismatched diagnosis/procedure, invalid codes) are top denial
✅
reasons.
C: Services may be denied if not covered (medical necessity, experimental,
✅
excluded).
❌
D: Claims filed after timely filing limits are automatically denied.
E: Patient satisfaction does not cause denials.
Graduate-Level Insight: Denial management is a critical revenue cycle function. Tracking
denial reasons helps target process improvements. The average denial rate is 5-10%;
best-in-class organizations achieve <3%.
Q4 (True/False with Justification):
Statement: Under the No Surprises Act (effective 2022, updated 2026), providers must
give uninsured and self-pay patients a good faith estimate of expected charges upon
request or at time of scheduling.
Correct Answer: TRUE
Justification: The No Surprises Act requires providers to provide uninsured and self-pay
patients with a good faith estimate of expected charges for scheduled services. This
estimate must include:
ACCOUNTING: TEST 7 – 2026/2027 UPDATED
EDITION - Graduate-Level Financial Assessment
with Complete Solutions & Healthcare-Specific
Rationales
💰 SECTION 1: REVENUE CYCLE MANAGEMENT – 9 Items
Q1 (Multiple Choice): In the healthcare revenue cycle, which step occurs immediately
after patient registration and insurance verification?
A. Charge capture
B. Claim submission
C. Payment posting
D. Utilization review
Correct Answer: A. Charge capture
Rationale: The revenue cycle sequence:
1. Preregistration/Registration → 2. Insurance verification/eligibility → 3. Charge
capture (documenting services/procedures) → 4. Coding (ICD-10, CPT, HCPCS)
→ 5. Claim submission → 6. Payment posting → 7. Denial management → 8.
Patient billing/collections
❌ B: Claim submission occurs after coding.
❌ C: Payment posting occurs after claim adjudication.
,❌ D: Utilization review occurs concurrently with care delivery, not as immediate next
step.
Graduate-Level Insight: Understanding revenue cycle sequence is critical for identifying
bottlenecks and improving cash flow. Charge capture errors (missed charges, incorrect
codes) are a leading cause of revenue leakage.
Q2 (Multiple Choice): A hospital's net days in accounts receivable (A/R) is 62 days. The
industry benchmark is 45-50 days. Which action would most directly improve this
metric?
A. Increase prices for self-pay patients
B. Accelerate claim submission and follow-up on unpaid claims
C. Write off more bad debt
D. Increase charity care write-offs
Correct Answer: B. Accelerate claim submission and follow-up on unpaid claims
Rationale: Net days in A/R measures the average number of days it takes to collect
payment after a service is provided. High days in A/R indicates slow collections. Direct
interventions include:
● Faster claim submission (reducing lag time)
● Aggressive follow-up on unpaid claims
● Clearing claim edits/errors quickly
● Addressing denials promptly
❌ A: Price increases affect revenue per service, not collection speed.
❌ C: Writing off bad debt removes uncollectible accounts from A/R but does not
❌ D: Charity care adjustments reduce revenue but do not accelerate collections.
improve collection speed.
, Q3 (SATA): Which of the following are common causes of claim denials in healthcare?
(Select all that apply.)
A. Incorrect patient demographic information
B. Missing or invalid CPT/ICD-10 codes
C. Service not covered by patient's insurance
D. Timely filing limits exceeded
E. High patient satisfaction scores
Correct Answers: A, B, C, D
✅
Rationale:
✅
A: Incorrect demographics lead to claim rejection or denial.
B: Coding errors (mismatched diagnosis/procedure, invalid codes) are top denial
✅
reasons.
C: Services may be denied if not covered (medical necessity, experimental,
✅
excluded).
❌
D: Claims filed after timely filing limits are automatically denied.
E: Patient satisfaction does not cause denials.
Graduate-Level Insight: Denial management is a critical revenue cycle function. Tracking
denial reasons helps target process improvements. The average denial rate is 5-10%;
best-in-class organizations achieve <3%.
Q4 (True/False with Justification):
Statement: Under the No Surprises Act (effective 2022, updated 2026), providers must
give uninsured and self-pay patients a good faith estimate of expected charges upon
request or at time of scheduling.
Correct Answer: TRUE
Justification: The No Surprises Act requires providers to provide uninsured and self-pay
patients with a good faith estimate of expected charges for scheduled services. This
estimate must include:
