There’s nothing quite like the peace of mind that comes with smooth collections at your medical practice. We know the stress and pain that complicated collections can cause. We hope to help you quell your concerns and increase your collections with these 4 tips.
1. Collect copays and deductibles
No matter who your patient is and what their excuses may be, make sure you collect their appropriate copays and deductibles out of pocket at the time of service. Part of making sure this happens includes keeping your patients’ updated insurance and financial information on file. This will help you know exactly how much their copay or deductible is according to their current plan. You’ll never be sorry that you collected the money due at the time of service. By collecting copays and deductibles, you’re also ensuring that you’re getting at least part of the payment, even if for some reason their coverage falls through.
2. Be transparent with your patients before treatment
It’s absolutely necessary to clearly communicate your payment policies and plans to your patients before their treatment. Do your best to communicate your expectations so they are aware of how much they will be billed when they will be billed, and when their payment is due. All of this will help ensure that your patients know what they’re signing up for when they agree to treatment. If properly communicated, it can also hold them contractually obligated to pay you at a certain time. They can’t claim that they weren’t aware of the policies if you’re diligent about communicating it to them every single time they receive treatment.
3. Offer payment plans
We’ve said it before, but we’ll say it again—offering payment plans is a great way to increase collections in your medical practice. Patients are almost always more receptive when you offer flexibility in payment plans. You can also offer incentives with an option like Early-Out that encourages them to pay off their entire bill early. Communicating these options in an empathetic way will go a long way when it boils down to help maintain positive relationships with your patients. They often value this more than you might expect.
4. Implement follow-ups in your collections process
Don’t worry about being a bother when it comes to follow-ups. There’s proof that follow-ups pay off when it comes to collections. People do genuinely miss your first messages or simply forget to pay them. Giving them a polite nudge with a follow up that their deadline is just around the corner may be just what they need to pay on time.
Increasing your collections reaps benefits for your medical practice. Our Frost-Arnett team wants to help you do just that. We specialize in protecting your patient-provider relationships while easing the pain from collecting debt. Contact us at 1 (855) 287-7043 to learn more about how we can help you increase your collections!