Many consumers struggle to pay unexpected healthcare bills, yet many healthcare systems lack the human resources to create a positive patient financial experience.
Technology can address both issues.
During a December Becker's Hospital Review webinar sponsored by Flywire, two revenue cycle experts discussed how Peoria, Ill.-based OSF HealthCare uses digital solutions to offer patient self-service, improve patient satisfaction with the financial experience and enhance the revenue cycle:
- Laurie Hurwitz, senior vice president revenue cycle, OSF HealthCare
- John Talaga, executive vice president and general manager of healthcare, Flywire
Five key takeaways:
1. Affordability is a major problem in healthcare. Flywire surveyed more than 2,000 patients and found that 85 percent are concerned about rising medical costs. Close to half (46 percent) can't pay for an unexpected illness or surgery in one lump sum. Even more concerning is that almost 40 percent of people have postponed a procedure or treatment because they can't afford it. "Our research revealed that 84 percent of consumers believe healthcare payment systems need streamlining, 77 percent want to pay for unexpected medical expenses using installments, and 55 percent feel that hardly any providers offer a consumer-friendly approach to billing. We're trying to change that," Mr. Talaga said.
2. We're living in a subscription economy; healthcare is no different. It's now common for consumers to pay for things on a monthly basis, which has propelled the "buy now, pay later" movement. Health systems must leverage these trends and use payment plans as a source of strategic advantage, rather than a last resort.
3. Patient-friendly 2.0 billing uses digital technologies and data to create meaningful consumer experiences. It's not enough for health systems to simply offer an online portal. OSF HealthCare partnered with Flywire in 2016 to enhance the patient financial experience by using information and technology in creative ways. "Instead of credit scores, we look at data we have about how patients pay their bills. Just because a person can make a house, car or credit card payment doesn't mean they have the capacity to pay a large, unexpected healthcare bill. We look at whether patients usually pay in one lump sum, need a payment plan or default. That information is available; we just need a partner who can harvest the data, provide us with the necessary intelligence and match that with customized offers for patients," Ms. Hurwitz said.
4. Self-service payment options are beneficial for patients and health systems alike. Patients want self-service options that are easy and fast, whether through email, the internet or a telephone interactive voice response system. OSF HealthCare makes all of those options available. "It's hard to recruit, hire and retain people today," Ms. Hurwitz said. "By implementing self-service, we have been able to support acquisitions and additional patient volume without hiring more employees."
5. Constantly monitoring customer needs leads to better self-service and payment outcomes. OSF HealthCare has found that many patients prefer to receive their statement via email, so they can start planning how to pay. "Email statements offer added time and flexibility. They enable patients to successfully manage payments on their own, which is what they want. Looking ahead, I think more patients will prefer to get account information in a text message," Ms. Hurwitz said. Over the last year, the number of OSF HealthCare patients who acted on an email and paid has increased by 63 percent. In addition, the percentage of payments driven by email rather than paper statements has grown from 30 percent to 50 percent .
Most patients want to pay their bills. Integrating payment plans into the self-service process is a way to help patients meet their obligations while maintaining their dignity. According to Ms. Hurwitz, "People don't want to call and say, 'I can't afford to pay what I owe.' Self-serve takes that awful feeling away. By giving patients more options, we are collecting more and sending fewer patient accounts to collections."
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