Before You Start
Have the following ready before you open Sigma to reconcile a remittance:- Insurer remittance advice (EOB) — The document from the insurer listing each claim paid, approved amounts, adjustments, and denials
- Payment date and total amount received — As shown on the remittance or your bank statement
- Bank deposit reference — The reference number from your bank confirming the deposit, for cross-referencing
1
Navigate to Payments
Open the Payments module from the main navigation. The Payments module shows your list of posted and pending remittances, along with any unmatched payment lines requiring attention.
2
Create a New Remittance
Click New Remittance. Enter the following details in the remittance header:
- Insurer / Scheme — Select the scheme this payment came from
- Remittance date — The date shown on the remittance advice
- Total amount received — The total payment amount from the insurer
3
Add Remittance Lines
For each line on the remittance advice, add a corresponding line in Sigma. Enter:
- Claim reference — The claim number as it appears on the remittance advice
- Approved amount — The amount the insurer approved for this claim
- Adjustments — Any deductions applied (e.g., co-pay recovery, benefit limit reduction)
- Denial code — If a line was denied, enter the denial code and reason
4
Match to Claims
Click Match Claims. Sigma automatically suggests matching open claims for each remittance line based on claim reference number, patient details, and visit date.For each suggestion:
- Review the matched claim to confirm it is the correct one
- Click Confirm Match to link the remittance line to the claim
- If the suggested match is wrong, click Change Match and search manually for the correct claim
5
Review Variances
When the approved amount on a remittance line differs from the amount on the matched claim, Sigma flags a variance. For each variance, record the reason:
- Co-pay adjustment — The insurer deducted the patient’s co-payment from the scheme payment
- Benefit limit reached — The approved amount is capped by the patient’s annual benefit
- Service not covered — A line item was excluded from the scheme’s benefit schedule
- Rate difference — The insurer applied a different tariff than the one billed
6
Post the Remittance
Once all lines are matched and variances are recorded, click Post Remittance. Sigma:
- Updates each matched claim to Paid status
- Posts the approved amounts to the claims’ payment history
- Recalculates outstanding balances for each scheme and patient
- Adds the remittance to the revenue summary for the period
Unmatched Lines
If a remittance line does not match any open claim in Sigma, do not skip it. Work through the following checks before escalating:- Check the claim reference — Confirm the reference number on the remittance advice matches what was submitted. Transcription errors are common.
- Search by patient and date — Use the claim search to find the claim by patient name and visit date if the reference number doesn’t match.
- Verify the claim was submitted — Check the Claims queue to confirm the claim exists and has a Submitted status. If it was never submitted, create and submit it now.
- Escalate to the insurer — If the claim was submitted and the reference is correct but Sigma still can’t locate a match, contact the insurer with your submission records to confirm they received it.
Patient Co-payment Reconciliation
To record a patient direct payment against an outstanding invoice balance:- Navigate to Billing and open the patient’s invoice.
- Click the Payments tab on the invoice.
- Click Record Payment and enter:
- Amount received
- Payment date
- Payment method (cash, card, mobile money, cheque, or other)
- Click Confirm. The patient balance on the invoice updates immediately, and the payment appears in the invoice payment history.
Related
Payments Module
Configure payment methods, manage remittance records, and view payment history.
Revenue Tracking
Monitor billed amounts, outstanding balances, and collection trends in real time.