The future of online patient billing and payment
Recently, Emdeon Executive Vice President of Provider Services Philip Hardin sat down with the respected journal Future Healthcare to discuss the present and the future of online patient billing and payment and what it will mean for providers. Below is an excerpt from this conversation and the URL where you can listen to the podcast of the entire conversation:
Future Healthcare: Online billing and payment is gaining acceptance and momentum in most markets, with 74 percent of consumers paying at least one bill per month online. Given this growth in the retail sector, what are some reasons why healthcare has been slow to adopt online patient billing and payment?
Philip Hardin: The healthcare industry has unique challenges that have slowed the adoption of online patient billing and payment. Due to the nonrecurring nature of healthcare billing, providers are skeptical about the need for online billing and payment methods and are concerned that patients may not utilize these methods. Additionally, more in healthcare than in any other industry, security concerns associated with online billing and payment are paramount. HIPAA requirements established by the federal government mandate the protection of protected health information (PHI), forcing healthcare to more carefully consider the implications of placing patient information on the Internet.
There is also the perception in healthcare that online billing and payment systems are expensive to implement and time-consuming to manage. However, the application service provider (ASP) technology to enable these capabilities is available with modest IT and capital investments. Initially, healthcare providers and payers must make some necessary workflow changes to facilitate online patient billing and payment. Some of these workflow changes may be as simple as creating a method to capture and store necessary patient communication data such as e-mail addresses. To be consistent with other retail-oriented industries, there are some long-term workflow changes that are necessary to give consumers visibility into primary insurance payments, contractual discounts and coordination of benefits on a timely basis.
Which healthcare trends will impact provider adoption of online patient billing and payment solutions?
As consumer-directed health plans (CDHP) increase in popularity, a greater percentage of healthcare costs will be transferred to the patient. In response to this, providers will need new methods – both paper and electronic – to communicate financial responsibility to patients. In addition, as the Healthcare Financial Management Association (HFMA) PATIENT FRIENDLY BILLING® initiative gains visibility, more providers will be encouraged to develop a technology strategy for improved patient financial communication, including online billing and payment capabilities.
Another healthcare trend that will impact the adoption of online billing and payment solutions is the rising cost of collections that providers are experiencing. Costs associated with in-house billing and payment activities such as printing and mailing statements, returned mail management and storage, retrieval and archival of paper information have been steadily increasing, forcing providers to look for ways to reduce costs. As a result, online billing and payment solutions are more likely to be considered since they enable providers to reduce or eliminate the paper-based billing and payment activities and the associated costs.
What factors should providers consider when looking for an online billing and payment solution?
Any online billing and payment solution being considered should encompass healthcare billing compliance requirements and standards, including HIPAA requirements, to protect PHI. Technology deployment is also important as providers typically have limited IT resources. The ideal online billing and payment solution should require few provider IT resources to implement or maintain. The best solutions are integrated with the providers’ patient statement printing and mailing process. This prevents a second system implementation, minimizes ongoing maintenance costs and eliminates synchronization issues that would confuse the patient.
The ability to integrate with existing patient billing processes is also important when evaluating an online solution. For instance, understanding existing credit card processor agreements and whether or not these will need to change with a new online billing and payment solution is critical. Furthermore, an integrated solution will also enable comprehensive visibility of all payment activity across multiple facilities and should eliminate the need for manual keying of payment information through automated payment posting to the patient’s record.
Another important factor that providers should consider when selecting an online billing and payment solution is the ability to accept a wide variety of payment types such as credit cards, check cards and eCheck/automated clearing house (ACH) payments. The more flexible the payment options are, the more likely that patients will pay.
To hear a convenient podcast of the entire conversation between Phillip Hardin and Future Healthcare, be sure to visit us at http://www.emdeon.com/ProviderSolutions/patient-pay-online/index.php.
