Reference table
Receivables and ageing
Sets out how Vault groups outstanding amounts by age and payer, the buckets used, and the figures the finance head can draw from each.
This page sets out how Vault groups outstanding amounts by age and payer, the buckets used, and the figures the finance head can draw from each. It is a reference for reading receivables the same way across every review.
What a receivable is
A receivable is an amount that is owed and yet to settle: an invoice raised and unpaid, a patient share outstanding, or a claim submitted and awaiting settlement. Vault holds every receivable against its account, and groups the whole book two ways at once, by age and by payer.
The ageing buckets
Vault ages each receivable from the date the service was given, so the age reflects how long the amount has stood rather than when the invoice was cut. Five buckets carry the book.
| Bucket | Age of the receivable | What the bucket signals |
|---|---|---|
| Current | 0 to 30 days | Amounts within the normal settlement window |
| Early | 31 to 60 days | Amounts starting to run past the window |
| Watch | 61 to 90 days | Amounts that warrant a follow-up |
| Aged | 91 to 120 days | Amounts at risk of slipping |
| Long | Over 120 days | Amounts that call for escalation or a decision |
Every receivable sits in exactly one bucket, and a receivable moves to the next bucket as it ages. The sum across the five buckets is the total book outstanding.
Grouping by payer
Alongside age, Vault groups receivables by who owes them. The payer group tells the finance head which follow-up path an amount takes.
| Payer group | Who owes | How it settles |
|---|---|---|
| Self-pay | The patient directly | At the counter or through an agreed instalment |
| Insurer | An insurance company | Through a claim, submitted and settled |
| Third-party administrator | A TPA acting for an insurer | Through a cashless claim and settlement |
| Government scheme | A scheme such as a state or central programme | Through the scheme claim path |
| Corporate | An employer or corporate account | Against the corporate agreement |
Reading age against payer gives the finance head a grid: a long-aged insurer amount points to a stuck claim, while a long-aged self-pay amount points to a patient balance to chase. The two views resolve against one book, so the totals reconcile.
The figures per bucket
From each bucket, and from each payer group within it, the finance head draws a small set of figures.
| Figure | What it reports |
|---|---|
| Outstanding amount | The total owed in the bucket, in rupees |
| Account count | How many accounts carry an amount in the bucket |
| Oldest date | The service date of the oldest receivable in the bucket |
| Payer split | How the bucket divides across the payer groups |
| Patient share | The portion owed directly by patients rather than payers |
Ageing runs from the service date
A receivable ages from the date the service was given, so an amount that has stood for a long time reads as aged even where the invoice was raised only recently. This keeps the ageing honest about how long the hospital has carried the amount.
How a receivable clears
A receivable leaves the book when its account settles: a payment posts against the patient share, or a payer settles the claim. A written-off amount leaves the book through an approved write-off rather than a payment, and the write-off stands as its own entry so the history holds. The financial audit trail records each of these movements.
Common questions
Why does ageing run from the service date rather than the invoice date?
Ageing from the service date reports how long the hospital has carried the amount. An invoice raised late on an old stay still ages from when the care was given.
Can one account sit in more than one bucket?
An account can carry receivables of different ages, so its amounts spread across buckets. Each individual receivable sits in exactly one bucket at a time.
How is a patient share told apart from a payer share?
Each charge carries one split into a payer-covered share and a patient-responsible share. The receivable inherits that split, so the patient share and the payer share stay distinct through ageing.
Read how each of these figures is defined and derived in metric definitions.