Prior authorization is a health plan's requirement that a provider obtain approval before a service is performed for it to be covered. Advanced imaging such as MRI, CT, and PET commonly requires it. If the authorization is missing when the exam happens, the claim can be denied and the practice or patient left with the cost.
Prior authorization is separate from insurance eligibility verification: a plan can be active and in network and still require approval for a specific exam. Requests typically include the ordering provider, the exam, and the diagnosis, and payers can take days to respond.
Echo Booking flags exams that need prior authorization when coverage is checked, raises each one as a tracked task, and keeps the patient updated on its status. It does not make the clinical case for medical necessity; that stays with the practice.
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Press play and read along. Echo answers, switches language mid-call, reads live openings straight out of the calendar while it is still talking, then writes the booking back into it. Nothing is left queued for staff to finish afterwards.