When a claim is denied, what is a typical next step?

• A. Ignore the denial and wait.
• B. Review the reason for denial and resubmit a corrected claim.
• C. Cancel the patient's account.
• D. Increase the charge.

Answer: (B)

When a claim is denied, the usual next step is to review the denial reason in the payer’s remittance advice or EOB and resubmit a corrected claim. You start by identifying what caused the denial—coding errors, missing or inconsistent information, lack of required documentation, eligibility or authorization issues, or timely filing problems. Then you fix the issue (correct codes, verify patient and provider details, attach supporting documentation if needed, ensure proper modifiers and dates) and submit the claim again for reconsideration. If the issue isn’t resolved after resubmission, an appeal or reconsideration may be pursued, but the initial move is to correct the error and resubmit. Ignoring the denial, canceling the patient’s account, or simply increasing the charge doesn’t address the payer’s concern and won’t recover payment.