Patients who have negative interactions in hospital business offices are less likely to willingly pay their bill, signaling an opportunity for hospitals to improve patient financial experience, an annual Connance consumer survey found.
The survey, conducted in July, asked 500 consumers about their last hospital encounter and their hospital business office experience.
Five other findings:
1. Respondents gave hospitals better net promoter scores compared to 2017 Connance consumer survey participants. The net score, which measures patients' likelihood to recommend the hospital, increased to 22.6 percent in 2018.
2. The business office experience is also linked to the bill amount: Respondents said they are more likely to call the business office if their bill amount is large.
3. Out-of-pocket costs influence patients' hospital choice: More than half of respondents said out-of-pocket costs are somewhat or very likely to influence their provider choice.
4. Hospitals have an opportunity to improve pre-service patient engagement: Only 35 percent of respondents with payment responsibility said they spoke to the business office before treatment to receive an estimate of service cost.
5. Patients trust insurance companies most to provide the best estimate: Fifty-three percent of respondents said they believe insurance companies will provide the best estimate, while 19 percent chose hospitals.
Read more about the survey here.
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