A Better Way to Track Representative Payee Services

For health organizations providing representative payee services, tracking expenses can be time-consuming, particularly when managing hundreds or thousands of client transactions and bank accounts. Many organizations rely on spreadsheets, which are risky, difficult to maintain, and lack real-time visibility. Month-end allocations and reconciliations further complicate client accounting and timely reporting. As a result, managers may struggle to find a clear picture of each client’s financial status, causing overspend of their funds. This can also limit the ability to provide accurate and timely reports to managers and clients. Adopting a more effective approach can save time, improve accuracy, and offer greater financial control.

Leverage Your ERP

One way to simplify tracking is by using tools already available in your enterprise resource planning (ERP) system. By setting up each participant as a dimension within the chart of accounts and using bank subaccounts, you can monitor balances, categorize expenses, and generate reports that show beginning and ending balances for any period. Instances where a corporate credit card or expense reimbursement is needed can be easily tracked by coding those expenses to that client’s dimension. Additionally, reconciliations can be performed using a single bank statement import rather than performing a 1:1 manual reconciliation between each client and their individual account in the bank. This provides real-time visibility into client funds, enables more proactive budget management, and leads to a more seamless monthly close. To add further controls, use a blanket purchase order and require all purchases to be matched to that purchase order to encumbrance spending. 

Assess an Expense Management Add-On

If your ERP system does not fully meet your needs, a specialized expense management system may be worth considering. There are numerous available options; many of these solutions issue prepaid debit cards to clients with spending limits and spending type restrictions to provide control and autonomy directly to the client. Cards can be auto-refilled with the click of a button instead of dealing with checks and the lengthy check cashing process. Many solutions provide easy expense tracking options as well, where the client can auto-match a receipt to the spend, fulfilling documentation requirements at the time of spend. These solutions can offer managers quick real-time spending insight into all their clients. Most of these solutions can integrate with a modern ERP system to allow for real-time transmission of data into the general ledger. These options need to be considered, taking into account the Federal and state regulations surrounding the particular program.

Automate Processes

For routine expenses, automation can further streamline processes. Housing, cable, phone, and utility costs often remain consistent month to month. Memorized transactions simplify expense tracking and reduce errors, while recurring payments for housing and other fixed costs eliminate manual work and improve consistency. If allocations are needed for shared expenses, these transactions can be set up in advance, ensuring that only anomalies require manual adjustments.

Denials analysis can be automated which, along with the corresponding dashboarding, would quickly identify coding patterns that could potentially be remediated, reducing lost revenue. Invoicing and reconciliation processes may also be automated and simplified with the use of artificial intelligence.

By modernizing how you track representative payee services, you can spend less time on administrative tasks and more time supporting your clients.

How We Help

AAFCPAs’ Business Process & Internal Controls team specializes in optimizing representative payee services by aligning people, processes, and technology. We help healthcare organizations—including Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs), behavioral health providers, and senior care facilities—streamline tracking, reporting, and expense management within existing ERP systems. Our approach reduces manual tasks, enhances financial oversight, and improves compliance with funding requirements.

Our team works with clients to implement customized solutions, whether through specialized systems or by leveraging existing tools to improve efficiency. We ensure smooth tracking of participant balances, automate bill allocations, and simplify disbursement systems. Additionally, our expertise in data security safeguards sensitive information, helping healthcare organizations maintain compliance and financial stability.

These insights were contributed by Robyn Leet and Stuart Karas. Questions? Reach out to our authors directly or your AAFCPAs partner. AAFCPAs blog offers a wealth of resources related to Business Process Improvement. Subscribe to get alerts & insights in your inbox.