Revenue Cycle Management (RCM) Practice Exam 2025 - Free RCM Practice Questions and Study Guide

One potential consequence of revenue leakage is the loss of potential income for providers. Revenue leakage occurs when healthcare organizations fail to collect all of the revenue that they are entitled to receive for services rendered. This can happen due to a variety of factors such as billing errors, undercoding or overcoding of services, claims denials, and other inefficiencies in the revenue cycle.

When revenue leakage occurs, it directly affects the financial health of the healthcare provider. The failure to capture the full amount of revenue can lead to budget shortfalls, making it difficult for providers to maintain operations, invest in new technologies, or hire staff. As a result, potential income that could have been utilized for improved services, better patient care, or increased operational capabilities is effectively lost, impacting the overall sustainability of the provider's operations.

In contrast, the other options — increased service availability, higher operational efficiency, and reduction in patient care quality — do not directly relate to the consequences of revenue leakage. Revenue leakage typically implies a detriment to the financial aspect of a provider's practice rather than improvements in operational efficiency or service availability.