A lot of healthcare providers are still feeling the financial pinch of the Change Healthcare cyberattack, and that may move more of them to take a proactively innovative approach to bolstering the payment options they offer patients as a means of improving their accounts receivable processes, according to a published report.
More than half of healthcare providers affected by the cyberattack are using their personal funds to cover expenses, according to a survey conducted by the American Medical Association. This may spur those providers — and others — to begin meeting consumers where they want to be when paying their bills, and that place is online. While three-quarters of consumers want to pay their bills online, 71% of providers most often use paper and other manual processes when billing patients, according to the report. Providers should be conducting audits of their accounts receivable processes to identify what is working and the areas that need improvement.
This includes offering modern payment options, like text-to-pay, card on file, financing and payment plan options, and online patient portals.
Modernizing payment portals may not seem like an investment that will yield significantly more revenue for providers, but it will make customers happier and more likely not to leave for another provider and addresses what has long been a neglected revenue channel for healthcare companies.
Offering modern payment options not only improves the likelihood that a healthcare provider will get paid by a patient, but also helps improve transparency about the costs of care and treatment.
