Every practice owner asks “what is a good A/R number?” The answer depends on your payer mix, your specialty, and how clean your claims are when they go out.
The benchmarks that actually matter
For solo mental health and physical therapy practices, here are the ranges we see:
| Metric | Healthy | Needs attention | Critical |
|---|---|---|---|
| Days in A/R | 11–18 | 19–30 | 30+ |
| A/R over 90 days | < 10% | 10–20% | 20%+ |
| Clean claim rate | > 95% | 90–95% | < 90% |
These are not national averages. National averages include hospital systems and large group practices that have very different dynamics. A solo practice comparing itself to an MGMA national average is comparing apples to a truckload of different fruit.
Why your number is climbing
The three most common causes we see:
1. Claims going out with missing or incorrect information
This is the most common cause and the easiest to fix. Missing modifier, wrong NPI, expired authorization — these cause denials that age into A/R problems.
2. Denials not being worked promptly
A denial that sits for 30 days before someone looks at it has already lost 30 days of recovery time. Most payer appeal windows are 90–180 days, but the sooner you appeal, the higher the success rate.
3. Patient responsibility not being collected at the time of service
Co-pays and deductibles that are billed after the session have a collection rate of about 30%. Collected at the time of service, that number is 90%+.
What we do
When we take on a practice, we run an A/R aging analysis in the first week. We categorize every outstanding claim by age, payer, and reason for delay. Then we build a prioritized worklist that targets the highest-value recoverable claims first.
The goal is not just to lower the number — it is to understand why the number is what it is, so it does not climb back up.
Last verified: August 2026. Individual practice results vary based on payer mix, specialty, and claims volume.
