How Personalization Can Improve the Patient Payment Experience

Rising Patient Payment Responsibility 

The Kaiser Family Foundation’s 2019 annual employer benefits survey notes that the average family coverage premium rose by 54% over the prior ten years. Employee wages, however, have not grown at nearly the same speed. Additionally, deductibles remain a crucial driver of patient out-of-pocket costs, adding to the payment responsibility strain. The number of patients with employer-sponsored coverage with deductibles rose to 82%.

As patient payment responsibility grows, so does the worry about whether they can pay these rising healthcare costs. In fact, 73% of patients express concern about their ability to pay their medical bills. The pressure of uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic also heightens financial hardships as unemployment concerns press on.

In addition, recent data shows that demographics like gender and age can shift the impacts of patient financial strain. For example, millennials are two times more likely to avoid healthcare due to cost than baby boomers.

Personalizing Payment Options Helps Both Patients and Providers

The growth in patient out-of-pocket responsibility impacts payment preferences. Patients want convenient, easily accessible and easy to understand options to help them navigate their medical expenses. 83% of patients prefer digital payment options like those they use for their non-healthcare bills to pay for their medical expenses. The need for social distancing droveeven more demand for digital options. Contactless technologies, such as mobile wallets and EMV chips, enable safe on-site payments without ever having to touch a keypad or hand a credit card over to office staff.

Digital payments can help eliminate the friction between patients and providers within the payment process. With payment options that fit their circumstances, patients can better manage medical expenses before balances reach collections. Empowering patients with personalized experiences not only helps providers get paid quicker, but also helps streamline back-office processes.

Keeping in mind the many factors to consider, between demographics and financial components, there is no one-size-fits-all payment solution. To fit patients’ specific needs, providers must create flexible payment experiences.

As the financial burden of the pandemic stretches across the healthcare industry, maintaining steady revenue is more critical than ever. Taking steps to personalize the payment experience can increase collections while the pandemic continues and beyond.

Save Cards on File to Streamline and Automate Payments

Patients want simple choices to control their healthcare payments. One way to achieve this is to empower them to schedule payments based on their preferences and budgets through automated payments. You’ll need to implement a process to securely save patient credit cards on file for a convenient payment option that promotes automatic collection as soon as claims are adjudicated. Be sure to establish a policy to communicate with patients before cards are charged and deliver receipts after payment processing.F

Enable Payment Plans To Reduce Debt and Simplify Staff Processes

Many patients face medical-related debt that they can’t afford. Moreover, 56% of consumers are unable to pay balances above $1,000. To help patients pay large bills over a period of time, consider using save cards on file for payment plans.

Digital payment plans simplify processes while also helping ensure collection without relying on paper statements. Furthermore, digital technology with robust reporting tools can help staff more clearly address balances and avoid sending a patient to general collections. Automating payment plans are also a cost-effective way to lessen manual paper-based processes.

Implement eStatements and Self-Service Portals to Empower Patients

Sending eStatements, rather than sending paper bills, creates a more efficient and economical process. Payments can happen faster and there are no mailing costs.

Online patient portals can offer an easy to understand and secure path to payment while putting patients in control of their medical billing obligations. Patients can readily access their payment information and see exactly what they owe. They can then pay online, eliminating the need to send paper checks in the mail or engage in person for payments with office staff.

Because online portals are self-service, they save time and money on costly back-office processes, too. These advantages are even more significant when staff works from home or by other alternative arrangements in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Offer Payment Experiences as Unique as Your Patients

Patients are unique. Their payment needs are no different. By offering multiple payment channels, healthcare providers can deliver personalized patient payment experiences while positively impacting their bottom line.