BEST PRACTICES FOR USING PAYMENT PLANS TO ENSURE PATIENT PAYMENTS By health insurance premiums continue to grow (at an average annual rate of 7.1 percent AHIP 2010), employers are switching to lower cost, As high-deductible health plans. This trend is resulting in an overall decrease in payor payments and a consequent increase in patient payments. This will continue throughout the next decade as the Affordable Care Act rolls out. As a result, billing services and their clients are more dependent on patients for revenue. To collect more from patients, many billing services have started to use patient-centered strategies, such as payment plans. However, to improve results and increase efficiency for their clients, billing services need to ensure that they have implemented best practices. A Growing Trend data from the 2011 “trends in healthcare Payments” report shows that the use of payment plans for healthcare payments has doubled since 2009.1 in the same report, 63 percent of surveyed patients said that they would utilize payment plans for their healthcare bills if given the option. FIVE BEST PRACTICES FOR SUCCESSFUL PAYMENT PLANS 1. Automate Payments many billing services support payment plans manually by managing a calendar that shows when each payment is owed and by calling patients to collect every month. this method is a step in the right direction, but it adds to the billing service’s work effort, does not ensure payment for the client, and has security flaws. Whether the payment plan is set up while the patient is in the office or after a statement is sent, billing services and their clients should securely collect and store payment information so they can automatically collect payments when they are due. 2. Automate Communications even when a patient authorizes automated monthly payments, he or she may still forget about the payment until it shows up on their next statement, which may create confusion and costly chargebacks. improve communication and offer payment transparency by automating email notifications to patients prior to each payment transaction. Tip: Provide clients with a one-page “FAQ” for patients explaining how payment plans work, including payment timing, notifications, and payment card security. 3. Draw a Line it is great for billing services to give patients some flexibility and choice in how much they pay each month, but it is also necessary that they set parameters and stick to them. as a standard best practice, billing services should charge a minimum monthly payment of $100 or require that the bill be paid in full within 12 months. 4. Collect Something Upfront Payment plans work well for patients who are unable to pay the full bill at once, but billing services should avoid allowing payment plans to become a way for patients to put off paying at all. establish a policy that patients must pay a certain percentage of the bill upon setting up a monthly payment plan. 34 hbma billing • may. june.2013 Bill Marvin
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