Since going into effect at the beginning of this year, the price transparency mandate has encouraged hospitals across the country to meet the criteria it lays out. While meeting the mandate in important, the simple fact is Recent studies indicate as such, with 49% of patients stating “having a clear estimate of financial responsibility will affect whether they see a certain provider.”
In an increasingly competitive healthcare marketplace where fiscal responsibility is shifting more and more to the patient, providers who can offer more visibility into the financial side of healthcare will be at a clear advantage.
With that in mind, let’s take a look at how you can use price transparency tools to meet those patient expectations and achieve your rev cycle goals.
Make it easier to shop around
The focus other industries have placed on improving the consumer experience has in turn created pressure on the healthcare industry to keep up. In order to do so, providers need to introduce more easily accessible and user-friendly tools, such as patient-facing, web-based estimate generators.
It should also allow patients to input specifics about their coverage so they can review what’s covered and how much they’ll be expected to pay.
A modern patient payment experience
Creating a convenient digital experience is no longer optional for providers. Patient satisfaction can be greatly affected by your presence online, so it’s important to offer tools they’ll find useful, such as straightforward cost estimates available ahead of care and an easy way to access statements and pay bills.
In 2018, a survey found that 90% of respondents no longer feel obligated to stick with providers that don’t provide a satisfactory digital experience. In 2019, a survey of 2,500 patients found that 75% research the cost of medical procedures online.
As more and more people begin diving into price comparisons, it’s important for your organization to build a long-term strategy that makes it easy for patients to access and use that information to both make healthcare decisions and pay for care. The right technology partner is key in establishing this strategy.
Steps to a strong price transparency strategy
- Work with a partner who can give you the most accurate estimates, including real-time patient-generated estimates for most shoppable procedures
- Choose a solution that requires minimal patient input to retrieve complete out-of-pocket detail
- Create the consumer-friendly digital experience patients want, which should include intuitive scheduling and financial assistance tools and convenient ways to pay on the web or through mobile devices
The wrap up
As price transparency grows in popularity and the scrutiny over its implementation becomes more rigorous, healthcare organizations must work hard to ensure they’re not coming up short. The consumerism at the heart of the transforming patient experience isn’t going away, but that just means providers have new motivation to improve the way people seek out their healthcare.
By being upfront about cost estimates and other financial information, you can proactively guide patients to helpful resources, and give your organization an edge over your competitors. You can also help patients develop reasonable expectations about their financial responsibility and develop realistic payment plans. As part of a larger patient engagement strategy, the right price transparency solution can help build better patient trust and loyalty, and in turn, help you grow revenue.
Schedule a demo of Waystar Patient Financial Care.
