Hidden Costs of In-House Prior Authorization Teams

Many healthcare organizations assume that keeping prior authorization (PA) tasks in-house saves money. On the surface, it seems logical—why pay an external partner when staff can handle it internally? But the reality is starkly different.

According to the AMA, physicians and staff spend an average of 14 hours per week per provider on prior authorization tasks. That’s time not spent on patient care—and money lost to inefficiency, denials, and staff burnout.

At Finnastra, we specialize in Healthcare Prior Authorization Services that cut through this complexity, helping practices reduce costs, accelerate approvals, and improve cash flow.

The True Cost of In-House Prior Authorization

Running prior authorization in-house is more expensive than most practices realize. The hidden costs include:

1. Staffing Costs

• Hiring, training, and retaining skilled staff for PA management is costly.
• Benchmark: MGMA estimates that practices spend $68,000–$90,000 annually per staff member handling insurance-related tasks.

By outsourcing, those costs are replaced with predictable, scalable fees aligned with your actual workload.

2. High Denial Rates

• In-house teams often lack payer-specific expertise, leading to avoidable errors.
• Data Point: According to Change Healthcare, 15–20% of denials are tied directly to prior authorization and eligibility issues.

Our Prior Authorization Services are designed to simplify submissions and reduce denial risk through payer-specific workflows.

3. Revenue Delays

• Delays in authorization mean delays in reimbursement.
• Example: If a $4,500 outpatient procedure is delayed by five business days for approval, that’s nearly a week of frozen cash flow per case.
• Multiply that across 50–100 requests per month, and you’re looking at hundreds of thousands of dollars stuck in limbo annually.

As a leading Prior Authorization Services Company, Finnastra ensures faster turnaround and accelerated revenue cycles.

4. Burnout and Turnover

• Staff managing PAs often juggle eligibility checks, insurance verification, and appeals—all while managing front desk or clinical admin tasks.
• Industry Insight: 88% of providers describe the administrative burden of PA as “high” or “extremely high” (AMA survey).
• This leads to burnout, errors, and high turnover costs, forcing practices into a cycle of re-hiring and retraining.

When you work with a dedicated Prior Authorization Services Company like Finnastra, your internal staff are freed to focus on patient engagement and practice growth.

5. Lost Opportunity Costs

Every hour your staff spends on prior authorizations is an hour not spent on:

• Expanding patient capacity
• Improving collections
• Supporting providers in clinical work

Outsourcing turns prior authorization from a resource drain into a strategic growth enabler.

Case Example: Mid-Sized Specialty Clinic

A 10-provider orthopaedic clinic managed PA in-house with two full-time staff. Despite the investment:

• Average PA turnaround time: 6 days
• Denial rate: 18%
• Annual in-house staffing cost: $140,000+

After outsourcing to Finnastra:

• Average turnaround: 2.3 days
• Denial rate: dropped to 8%
• Savings: $110,000 annually in staffing and rework
• Revenue unlocked: $250,000+ in accelerated reimbursements within the first year

Executive Question

How much is your practice really spending on prior authorization? If you factored in salaries, turnover, denials, and delayed reimbursements—would outsourcing save you money?

The Finnastra Advantage

As a trusted partner for Medical Prior Authorization Services, we provide:

• Expert insurance verification services and eligibility verification services to prevent errors before they happen
• Payer-specific submission expertise that boosts first-pass approvals
• End-to-end tracking and escalation to ensure faster turnaround
• Scalable support that grows with your practice

Our Prior Authorization Services are designed to simplify workflows, reduce overhead, and increase collections—so your staff can focus on patients, not paperwork.

Conclusion

The belief that in-house PA saves money is a costly myth. The hidden costs of staffing, denials, and burnout add up quickly, draining revenue and efficiency. Outsourcing to a leading Prior Authorization Services Company like Finnastra eliminates those costs and creates a streamlined, scalable solution.

Stop letting prior authorization hold your practice back.
Contact Finnastra today to see how outsourcing can lower your costs, reduce denials, and improve your bottom line.