$88,480 in uncollectible debt, $12,000 in excess fees, $3,000 in unnecessary time, and thousands in unaccepted treatment… this is what your practice might be losing (each year) by not implementing modern payment options.
Watch “Payment Strategies to Improve Patient Experiences & Boost Collections” in full to learn which areas of patient payments to change to get lost revenue back into your practice while speeding up cash flow and delighting patients or check out the high points in the recap below.
Table Of Contents
Resources Mentioned in the Patient Payment Strategies Webinar
General Resources
- Renew Practice-Web Support
- Get a Practice-Web Demo and Free Trial Version
- Contact Practice-Web Support
Additional Resources
- Learn More About Global Payments
- Watch the Account Payment Plan Video Tutorial
- Read “Creating an In-House Discount Plan: Step-by-Step Instructions”
Payment Trends
- 81% of people prefer digital payments over cash.
- 9 in 10 use some form of digital payments.
- 100% of people say contactless debit or credit cards are one of their top two desired payment methods.
- 50% of people want expanded payment options.
- Consumers rate the dental payment experience worse than any other industry, including utilities and airlines.
- Retail offers the best experience per consumer reports due to:
- Omnichannel payment experience.
- Billing clarity.
- Expanded payment options such as payments with a mobile wallet and text payments.
How the Patient Payment Experience Impacts Your Dental Practice
- 93% of people would consider switching dentists after a poor payment experience.
- Practice-Web makes it easy to meet patient expectations with its Global Payments integration that includes contactless card, mobile wallet, and text payments.
- 49% of patients can’t afford $400+ in unexpected treatment.
- 41% of patients are skipping dental treatment due to costs today.
- Offering financing makes it easier for patients to afford treatment and helps practices reduce overdue balances, plus reduces bad debt by $88k/ year for a typical practice.
- TuaPay is included in the Global Payments workflow, so patients have a self-service third-party financing option and practices can get paid right away.
- Practices can also use Practice-Web’s Payment Plans feature with recurring charges in Global Payments for in-house financing.
Benefits of Going Digital
- 74% of providers say it takes 30+ days to collect.
- 70% of providers say they have to send more than one statement to get patients to pay.
- 45% of patients say they’d pay quicker if notified via text or email.
- Up to half pay within an hour when their preferred e-billing method is used.
- Going digital addresses the primary reasons why patients don’t pay their bills, like affordability and knowing the amount due.
- 64% of providers implementing a payment system like the one Practice-Web offers see increased collections.
Addressing the Cost of Digital Transformation
- Current CareCredit rates range from 5.9% to 14.9%. With TuaPay, rates are capped at 4% to 6%, saving the typical practice between $5,000 and $26,000 per year.
- Merchant fees are up to 3.6% on average. Global Payments aims to meet or beat current rates and offers a free statement analysis to incoming practices to ensure costs are kept as low as possible.
Tricks for Successful Implementation
- Know your numbers. Pull your receivables report in Practice-Web and check your merchant statement for rates.
- Equip your team with the right tools, including a modern terminal and software that makes collections easy.
- Follow the six-step billing process to maximize collections:
- Collect up-front or at the time of service.
- Email/text the billing statement WITH online payment request right away, and print a walkout statement (with envelope). Call in 5 days if they haven’t paid.
- In 30 days, email/text a bill and reminder that the account is past due.
- Call after 60 days. Then, mail/email/text a more firmly-worded bill (second past-due notice).
- In 90 days, mail/email/text a final past-due notice.
- After 120 days, follow up the final notice with a call/email/text that their account is going to collections.
- Train your team on all equipment and processes.
- Update your marketing materials including website, in-office signage, emails, brochures, etc.
- Ensure all patient contact information is up to date.
- Teach patients about your payment options and processes. Ensure your paperwork includes the latest policies and procedures too.
Get Help Implementing These Strategies
- New to Practice-Web: Start with a demo.
- Current Clients with Support: Connect with our Support team for pointers and help implementing these strategies.
- Current Clients without Smart Tools: Connect with our Sales team for Support renewal and/or a Smart Tools consultation.