Learn how your practice can avoid sticker shock and help retain patients through flexible and reliable patient financing options.
Many patients unexpectedly find themselves facing overwhelming medical bills. Whether it's an unexpected procedure, an uncovered prescription, or a routine checkup that turns into more, the costs can quickly add up. The financial strain can be overwhelming when the math doesn't add up. This often leads to what many call a silent crisis—sticker shock. But the term may not do it justice. It can feel like a gut punch for patients to realize that health and financial stability are at odds. The fallout is everywhere—half-empty waiting rooms, rising medical debt, and preventable conditions worsening because care was put on hold when finances were tight. However, there's a solution that can benefit patients and healthcare providers: patient financing options.
Patient financing options bridge the gap by encouraging more patients to say “yes” to care when they would have previously delayed or declined care altogether. But the impact extends far beyond that initial surprise.
The Real Cost of Sticker Shock
Sticker shock in healthcare refers to the surprise and disappointment patients experience when confronted with unexpectedly high medical bills. This phenomenon has a variety of consequences, affecting a patient's financial well-being and health. A Deloitte 2024 Health Care Consumer Survey found that men and women, especially women, avoid necessary medical treatments due to cost concerns. The survey revealed that women are 31% more likely than men to delay or avoid care because of the associated costs.
These statistics highlight a significant problem and reveal the difficult personal choices many patients face. A report from the American Journal of Public Health indicated that medical bills contribute to 66.5% of bankruptcies. However, even short of bankruptcy, delaying or forgoing needed care frequently allows health problems to worsen, ultimately requiring more extensive and expensive treatment. Behind these numbers are real people making painful decisions: the parent delaying a child's procedure, the senior skipping prescribed medications, or the chronic disease patient stretching the time between necessary treatments.
Impact of Sticker Shock on Practices
For practices, the impact of sticker shock extends beyond immediate revenue loss to increased administrative costs and collection efforts. The scale of this issue was highlighted by a 2023 survey that revealed the healthcare industry reported over $50 billion in bad debt. This reality presents practices with a critical challenge: empowering patients to access and afford necessary care without jeopardizing their financial health.
Consequently, when patients associate your practice with financial stress, their trust diminishes, which may lead them to seek care elsewhere or avoid treatment entirely. This dangerous cycle impacts your practice's financial health and your mission of providing quality care. To address these challenges and better serve all patients, the question becomes a matter of strategy and adaptation.
Why Practices Need to Offer Patient Financing Options
Today's patients expect more from their providers than just quality medical care. They want financial flexibility and transparency similar to what they experience in other aspects of their lives—from online shopping to banking. This shift drives a growing need for better patient financing options in healthcare settings. The demand for more accommodating payment experiences is clear: 80% of patients want the option to pay medical bills in installments or through a payment plan.
Younger patients are especially likely to switch healthcare providers for better digital finance and payment solutions. Several key reasons for this include:
- Ease of Payment: Younger patients prefer online bill pay, digital wallets, and automated payment plans.
- Transparency, Not Guesswork: They expect clear, upfront pricing to budget effectively, not a surprise bill landing in their inbox or mailbox.
- Less Hassle: They prefer quick, digital payment options over mailing checks or waiting in line.
In a world of instant digital interactions, healthcare's financial experience is falling behind, despite often involving much larger expenses, and patients are noticing. The willingness of younger patients to change providers based on financial interactions presents both a challenge and an opportunity for forward-thinking practices. One key way these practices can seize this opportunity and overcome these challenges is by embracing patient financing options.
Patient financing options can address several challenges:
- They eliminate financial barriers, ensuring patients receive necessary treatments.
- They stabilize practice revenue, reducing the risk of non-payment.
- These options reduce appointment no-shows by offering upfront cost transparency and flexible payment options, making it more likely that patients complete their treatment.
- They encourage follow-up care, leading to better patient outcomes.
- They minimize debt collections, allowing patients to manage costs through predictable monthly payments.
These points show that implementing patient financing options allows practices to effectively bridge the gap in financial convenience that patients now expect, ultimately improving access to care while securing their revenue streams. Research shows that financial assistance programs significantly increase healthcare utilization, with results showing a 59% increase in inpatient encounters, a 20% increase in ambulatory encounters, and a 53% increase in emergency department visits. So, when financial obstacles are removed, patients are more likely to seek and receive necessary care. These increases point directly to the key benefits of patient financing options.
4 Key Benefits of Patient Financing Options
Increased Treatment Acceptance Rates
Patients who understand their flexible payment options are more likely to proceed with recommended care. This is especially true for elective procedures or treatments with higher out-of-pocket costs. Healthcare providers who offer various payment solutions, including flexible payment plans, attract more patients. The ability to spread payments over time removes the immediate financial barrier that might otherwise cause patients to say “no” to treatment.
About 6% of adults—roughly 14 million people—owe more than $1,000 in medical debt. Around 2% (6 million) owe more than $5,000, and about 1% (3 million) owe over $10,000. For many, these amounts are prohibitive lump-sum payments and force patients to make difficult decisions. However, with patient financing options, these large costs can become manageable monthly installments, ultimately meaning that:
- Patients feel empowered to select the most effective treatment plans rather than limiting themselves to what they can afford.
- Longer-term or phased treatments become financially within reach, improving the likelihood of successful outcomes.
- Follow-up treatments and preventive care receive higher priority because financial barriers are reduced.
- Specialty services with higher price points become viable options for more patients.
Increased access to care and reduced financial stress significantly enhance the overall patient experience.
Improved Patient Satisfaction and Trust
Offering flexible financing doesn't just facilitate transactions—it transforms how patients perceive your practice. Offering financing options demonstrates empathy and understanding of patients' financial concerns, facilitating deeper trust in the provider-patient relationship. When practices recognize patients' challenges and proactively provide solutions, patients feel valued and understood.
When you approach finances with this kind of understanding, patients will:
- Appreciate the transparency and respect shown when patient financing options are presented upfront.
- Experience less stress and anxiety about healthcare costs, allowing them to focus on their recovery.
- Build trust by seeing the practice as a partner rather than just a biller.
- Be more likely to share positive experiences, leading to word-of-mouth referrals.
Healthcare providers prioritizing financial empathy create a more positive and supportive patient roadmap. By offering flexible patient financing options, they transform potential financial barriers into opportunities to strengthen trust and build long-term loyalty throughout the patient's experience. Providing patients with a positive experience strengthens relationships and benefits the practice's financial health.
Higher Collection Rates and More Predictable Cash Flow
By allowing patients to manage their expenses through manageable payments, practices go from chasing large, often delinquent, balances to receiving consistent revenue streams. Patient financing options directly address the challenges of inconsistent revenue, leading to significantly improved and predictable collection rates. Rather than struggling to collect large balances—often unsuccessfully—practices receive regular, predictable payments.
This approach reduces accounts receivable numbers, allowing practices to invest in growth, technology, or improved patient care instead of managing unpaid balances. The financial benefits build over time, as improved cash flow can lead to better planning and resource allocation. With a more efficient and reliable payment system, practice staff can dedicate less time and resources to resolving payment issues and focus on patient care.
Fewer Payment Disputes and Administrative Headaches
When payment terms are clear and manageable, practices experience fewer payment disputes and collection challenges. The staff spends less time following up on unpaid balances, making collection calls, or manually managing payment plans. The positive impact on the daily tasks and overall well-being of the billing and administrative teams is significant, including:
- Billing staff spend less time on payment-related phone calls and follow-ups.
- Dispute resolution requirements decrease when payment expectations are clear and free of surprises.
- Staff can redirect their energy toward patient care and not just collection activities.
- Difficult financial conversations take less of an emotional toll on patients and staff.
In addition, the improved workplace environment contributes to higher staff satisfaction and reduced turnover—factors that have significant value in today's challenging healthcare staffing market. Ultimately, the goal is to provide patients with the care they need without financial obstacles, and solutions like BillFlash FlexPay offer a practical approach to achieving this.
Offer Care Without the Cost Barrier: Integrate Patient Financing With BillFlash FlexPay
Integrating patient financing options like BillFlash FlexPay can significantly streamline the billing process, making healthcare more accessible for patients and helping providers receive timely payments. When a practice integrates BillFlash FlexPay into its billing system, patients can manage healthcare expenses through flexible payment plans alongside regular bills. This straightforward integration simplifies how patients pay, reduces the workload for administrative staff who handle billing, and contributes to a more positive experience for the patient when dealing with the financial aspects of their care.
BillFlash FlexPay achieves these results through key benefits, such as:
- Immediate Payment With No Recourse: Providers receive full payment upfront, eliminating the risk of non-payment or delays. This arrangement ensures financial stability and reduces the need for collections.
- Flexible Monthly Installments for Patients: Patients can manage their healthcare expenses by choosing monthly payment plans, making it easier to afford necessary treatments without financial strain.
- Attracting and Retaining Patients: Offering flexible patient financing options sets your practice apart, attracting new patients and retaining existing ones who need affordable care. This approach fosters trust and strengthens patient-provider relationships.
- Accessible Financing Plans: With approval rates of 90%, patients with credit scores as low as 500 can qualify for financing. The online application is quick and easy, taking less than a minute to complete, and does not involve hard credit checks, preserving patients' credit scores.
- 0% Interest Financing Offer: Every approved patient receives a 0% interest financing option, making healthcare more affordable and encouraging timely payments.
These benefits help to empower providers and patients, streamlining payment processes and fostering stronger, long-term relationships.
Why BillFlash Is the Future of Patient Payments
As healthcare costs continue to rise, patient financing is no longer just an option—it's a necessity. Patients need access to flexible payment solutions that allow them to prioritize their health without the fear of going into debt. For providers, offering financing options like BillFlash FlexPay enhances the patient experience and ensures a steady, reliable revenue stream.
The future of patient payments is clear: flexibility, transparency, and affordability. BillFlash FlexPay is a step in the right direction, empowering patients and providers with smarter financial solutions. Healthcare should be about healing, not financial stress. With the right patient financing strategy, providers can create a more supportive, accessible, and patient-centered healthcare experience for everyone, regardless of income level.
By taking steps today and implementing flexible patient financing options, your practice stays ahead of the curve while establishing a new standard for care that prioritizes financial health and patient well-being. Ready to reduce sticker shock and retain more patients? Schedule a demo to learn how our billing, payment, and collection solutions—including FlexPay—can help your practice thrive.