Contactless payments have been on the rise across industries. Contactless payment in the healthcare industry have been especially beneficial, as patients can minimize contact with other people and objects, and organizations can better track cash flows. Below, we discuss the top five benefits of contactless payment options and how this shift occurred in the first place. Keep reading to discover how these methods can benefit your facility and where you can find reliable solutions to improve your business and patient satisfaction.
The Change in Healthcare Payment Technology
The healthcare industry constantly faces evolving trends and strategies. During the COVID-19 pandemic, contactless payment became the only option for patients and customers. Many people sought telehealth services to avoid physical offices. Pandemic-related policies and restrictions shifted the waiting room experience, with many processes moving over the phone or online. Checking in, collecting co-pays, and monitoring eligibility became a virtual task rather than a face-to-face one.
Although this option initially added convenience across industries, now contactless pay options can build trust with patients and make organizations seem more reliable and patient-focused. Currently, about 85% of patients enjoy electronic pay options for medical expenses, and just under 80% want these contactless options to remain in the upcoming years (Jessani).
Contactless Payment Benefits
Touch-free payment options are transforming healthcare in many ways. As cashless services grow in popularity, many businesses are also seeing an increase in benefits from these strategies. Although every facility has unique needs and goals, contactless payment can empower each facility to streamline processes and create more efficient strategies. Benefits of contactless payment options include:
1. Improving the patient experience
Patients enjoy convenience, including paying medical expenses and facility payments. Contactless pay options reduce the need to carry cash or checkbooks and can eliminate the need for wallet items altogether. Overall, these options improve the patient experience by reducing confusion associated with healthcare payments and empowering patients to make payments when it’s convenient for them. Whether you use a patient portal, have a phone system or utilize a patient-driven channel, you can ensure each patient has access to their expenses at any time. These solutions often allow patients to review their previous transactions as well, granting more visibility and improving patient relationships.
2. Saving time and reducing costs
Manual processes take time, and human errors can slow operations and impact revenue cycles. For example, recording cash at a front office or desk and manually reconciliation processes can succumb to human error, leading to slower operations and inefficient processes. Alternatively, touch-free pay options can optimize a facility’s revenue by allowing transactions to process faster and with fewer errors. These options can also reduce the workload for your billing and payment staff, empowering them to focus on more complex tasks. Well-integrated solutions can automate some of your crucial processes, making it easy to streamline workflows and simplify patient actions.
3. Making online payments transparent
Online payments can also reduce patient confusion about their expenses. Online platforms provide a reliable space for patients to view itemized bills, allowing patients to make informed decisions about their expenses and promoting trust between organizations and patients. Transparency can also improve real-time tracking and frequent reporting, allowing facilities to understand their processes better. For example, facilities can strategically allocate their finances and maximize resource use to improve operational effectiveness.
4. Enhancing cash flow
A reliable and accurate cash flow is essential. Efficiencies in the revenue cycle prompt growth initiatives and empower organizations to focus on patient-driven outcomes while increasing strategic value. The electronic channels operating contactless payment options are faster than human workers, allowing your treasury teams to see cash-on-hand improvements by reducing or eliminating the time it takes to receive and process payments through mail or face-to-face operations.
Patient-driven channels can also further improve cash flow by allowing patients to pay in whatever way is most convenient for them. For example, patients can monitor their bank accounts to determine which card they would prefer to use, making them more likely to pay in a timely manner.
5. Enhancing data security
All healthcare facilities must have enhanced security for handling patient information. Contactless payment options utilize effective encryption measures to protect financial information and restrict access. Facilities can implement authentication strategies to prevent unauthorized access, and regular security audits can help facilities ensure secure processes. By following industry trends and meeting industry requirements, healthcare organizations can promote safe financial transactions while protecting patient privacy. This focus on enhanced security may even bolster patient relationships and promote businesses as patient-driven.
Rectangle Health Touchless Pay Solutions
At Rectangle Health, you can shift away from outdated payment collection methods. We craft our solutions to help healthcare facilities thrive by automating and optimizing payment capture. We empower practices to unlock efficiency and receive payments faster. Our payment plans and financing options ease financial burdens and promote friendly ways to make treatment more accessible and affordable for every patient. We proudly offer a range of touchless pay solutions, including:
- Text-to-Pay
- Email payment links
- Mobile wallets and bank apps
- Touch-to-pay cards
- QR codes
By leveraging Bridge Payments, you can benefit from automatic payment posting, a system-agnostic interface, and technology integrations. Our simple interface is easy to use, and you can easily integrate it with any practice management solution.
Our solution also empowers healthcare practices to communicate payment options with patients prior to treatment and allows patients to pay their balances from anywhere. These features reduce the time to complete administrative burdens and cut costs associated with manual processes like paper and postage. Leveraging this solution ensures you can address each patient’s financial needs and ease difficult conversations about treatment costs. Additionally, flexible payment options attract more patients to your doors by highlighting your facility as consistent, reliable, and caring.
Enable Simple and Safe Payments with Rectangle Health
Rectangle Health is a leader in innovative healthcare technology. As a trusted partner to over 36,000 healthcare providers, we feel confident we can make payments easier and more accessible for your facility. Our comprehensive platform can streamline various daily operations, freeing time for your team and cutting operational costs. We’re 100% focused on healthcare and have more than 30 years of innovation under our belts to boast our experience.
We understand that a healthy practice translates to healthy patients. Finding innovative solutions for your facility can improve patient outcomes and strengthen your relationships. We’re committed to making things easier for you. Let’s talk about how we can benefit your facility. We look forward to hearing from you.
References
Jessani, Kerry. (2021, October 05). The Hospital of the Future: Contactless Payments, Happy Patients. Jpmorgan.com. Retrieved from https://www.jpmorgan.com/insights/payments/payment-trends/the-future-of-contactless-hospital-payments
