When a patient needs medical treatment, financial considerations are often the furthest thing from their mind. Understanding trends in patient billing behavior can help you to better support your patient community, ensuring their financial health while they focus on physical recovery— which in turn boosts recovery at your organization. In this post, we will revisit 5 key areas that empower patients to take control of their financial responsibilities and the statistics that support them.
1. Online Account Access
Online account access provides patients a convenient way to track account activity on their time, their way.
70% EXPECT a self-service portal.
69% want to resolve issues on their own.
82% want to pay all of their healthcare bills in one place.
2. Payment options
Medical debt is rarely anticipated, offering payment plans is not only the right thing to do, but it can also be the one thing that guarantees any recovery on an account.
77% want to pay an unexpected medical expense in installments.
93% delay payments for medical bills due to high cost.
61% of Americans cannot cover an emergency expense of $1000 or more.
3. Education
Patients make better decisions when they understand their bill and the life cycle of their account.
70% are confused by their medical bill.
37% paid a bill late because they didn’t understand they were responsible for it.
Nearly 43% of Americans lack basic financial literacy.
4. Mobile Apps
Putting account management and payment reminders into a patient’s pocket keeps patients engaged with their accounts.
70% prefer digital options for one-time payments.
82% of Americans use digital payments.
Push notifications can boost engagement by as much as 88%.
5. Settlements
A settlement offer can be a great motivator, also a great relief.
Medical debt has more than doubled since the beginning of the pandemic.
60% don’t try to negotiate their bill or payments before they go to collections.
In 2020 we saw a 300% increase in participation in settlement offers.
We utilize cutting-edge technologies and analytics to monitor trends in patient behavior. This not only helps us deliver for our clients but also helps us provide a better patient financial experience. We’ve found when patients are given the tools needed for success, they use them. If you think you can improve on your revenue cycle and build a better billing experience for patients, we can help. Schedule a call with one of our RCM experts today.
Got a minute, or two? Watch the latest ProHacks video: 5 Ways to Empower Patients to Take Charge of their Financial Health.