Whether it’s a virtual or in-person visit, if a patient’s plan has a co-pay, the doctor’s office has to collect it and the patient has to pay it. Since the pandemic and with a lot of Americans struggling with layoffs, business closures, etc., this might be more difficult to do, and many practices are probably running into this issue. What usually happens is the patient can’t pay at the time of visit and the practice opts to send a bill or defer the payment until the next visit. When the next visit comes and the patient still can’t pay, your accounts receivable for patient balances starts to go out of control with higher debts than ever. Here are some great tips on how to lower those balances and bring in the revenue you need to keep your practice going.
1. Look for other payment options.
In cases where a whole family goes to the same office, maybe one person has a credit balance and you can transfer it to satisfy another family member’s account or bring down that balance.
2. Re-train front desk staff.
Whether it’s training new staff or retraining, this step is mostly about remembering not to ask a yes or no questions like “Can you pay your balance today?” Chances are good that, if asked in that fashion, most people would answer no. It’s important to remind your patient of an outstanding balance and follow it up with, “How would you like to pay: cash, check, credit?” Or if your office is set up for it, you can suggest Zelle, Venmo, Cash app, etc.
3. Ask a staff member to step up.
In every office there is at least one person – hopefully more than one! – who always goes above and beyond, has great customer service, doesn’t take no for an answer but is so polite about it, the patient doesn’t even realize it. Consider making that individual the outstanding balance “Remind-er;” you might possibly give that person an incentive to close out outstanding balances. Example: If your Remind-er can knock down the balance by so much within a certain timeframe, give him/her an extra day off, a small bonus, a sought-after parking space. Creativity is key!
4. Don’t keep chasing patients.
Every practice has that patient who, no matter what you do, just never pays the balance. Establish a policy on the number of calls, statements, etc. you are going to send out because calls take time and statements cost money.
5. Make the consequences clear, and stick to them.
Once you set your policy from Step 4 above, you need to clearly define penalties or costs if the patient doesn’t pay, and then enforce them. If you don’t, some patients will take advantage and ruin it for those other patients who follow the rules. So, if you say that after so many attempts, your account will be turned over to a collection agency, you need to follow through with that.
6. Dismiss when necessary.
Most of the time, no doctor wants to terminate a doctor-patient relationship unless it’s absolutely necessary. In cases where a patient constantly has outstanding balances, ignores reminders and costs you time and money to collect, you do have the option to end the relationship/ Make sure to issue the patient a reminder and give a 30-day grace period to allow the patient to find a new provider. During that time, you will need to see them for “urgent” issues so you’re not charged with patient abandonment. Be sure to research the statutes in your state in case they differ from this information.
No practice will ever not have outstanding patient balances but if everyone follows the steps above on a daily basis, you can keep those balances at a reasonable level. Aren’t you glad you came across an article that’s given you a leg-up on pesky patient accounts?!