The Self-Pay Solution: Benefitting Providers & Patients

Whether you are recently unemployed, a college graduate, or a hard-working professional with a family to provide for, the prices for health care services are enough to make your heart stop.  Americans are trained to think that without insurance, they simply can’t afford good health care.  The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Medical Care for the Uninsured even states, “Americans without insurance don’t get the health care that those with insurance do.” Well we’re here to ask who the idiots are now, because readers, that is just simply not true anymore.

The quagmire of cost variations and the questions they bring, have built up in the minds of patients and providers alike as a result of the utter disrepair our health care system has found itself in, and now it needs a solution. That solution is self-pay, or cash-pay, whatever you want to call it.  In the past, physicians have shied away from promoting self-pay pricing within their facilities due to a myriad of reasons that usually relate back to low collections. However, with insurance companies cutting reimbursement, those physicians have found themselves trapped in quite the Catch-22. 

                 

Hospital systems have suffered the most when it comes to cash-pay collections, which is one of the many reasons the list prices for services like MRIs are so high there. They are having to cover-up for the patients that never pay-up.

What patients often don’t realize, is that their medical decisions are 100% up to them and they should price shopfor their services in the same way that they shop for cars.  Thanks to a new trend of pricing transparency, patients are seeing the light. The Pueblo, Colorado newspaper, The Pueblo Chieftain, wrote an article about the wide-ranging prices for MRIs in their area, showing the disparities between the hospital system and the independent diagnostic imaging facilities.  “Cash-paying patients in Colorado can shell out as much as $3,460 for a basic shoulder MRI, but a little shopping around can cut that cost to $450.” If you could save over $3,000 on an MRI, and still receive the same level of service and care, why wouldn’t you?

So, patients are obviously at a pricing advantage when you look at it this way, but we like win-win situations, so we found a solution that benefits both patients and providers.  That solution is Save On Medical.  For physicians, Save On Medical ensures that chasing after collections is a thing of the past, by collecting the previously agreed upon service cost ahead of time. Patients have the ability to price shop for services in their area in one place, without having to call around to 20 different facilities and question whether or not they are paying for quality care because the Docometer grades each option.  Studies show that on average, families end up paying upwards of $4,000 a year out-of-pocket for medical services, or they could just go to Save On Medical first.

Marketing: Improve Volume, Increase Revenue & Return-On-Investment

Today, I attended a free webinar that discussed some of the things that Marketing Professionals for Hospitals should be focusing their attention on, and while we do marketing for a myriad of different healthcare facilities from independent diagnostic facilities to specified radiation oncology centers at university hospital systems, I found the message very informative.  The speaker, CEO at The Heavyweights, John Luginbill discusses 9 ways to improve volume and revenue, and while they are geared towards facilities with larger budgets typical of a successful hospital system, independent facilities can utilize the same knowledge.

He discusses the following actions for Hospital Marketers:

1. Spend Money to Make Money: stating that an average hospital should be spending 1% of their gross revenue on paid media.
2. Choose DRG’s Wisely: Don’t spend money on something unless there is a high capacity for action and a high level of profitability.
3. Integrate Your Efforts: Meaning plan out how you will coordinate your promotions, advertisements and marketing efforts in each aspect of your business.
4. Target “Healthy” Patients: You aren’t going to convince a patient to leave their physician, rather focus on those that aren’t already in need.
5. Master Media Mix: Make sure that your media is effective and inspires an action, this is called a Call to Action.
6. Opt-In Marketing Not Optional: Utilize forms that require potential leads to provide their information so that you can help them.
7. Distribution of Patients: Be a resource to help them, even if it does not seem directly relatable to your practice.
8. Capitalize on Co-Risks: Analyze your community and determine how, for example, if an individual is at risk for multiple things, you can help “all of the above.”
9. Follow Downstream Revenue: Track with your financial people.

Some of the most important things to take away from this message lie in #2, #3, #4 and #5.

For Independent Facilities:

2. Consider what will work in your community that will not only improve your visibility but create an actual profit.  For example: Social Media is essentially free, if you dedicate time to a marketing campaign on Twitter and Facebook and it brings in just THREE people, that return-on-investment is HUGE, because you didn’t spend any money marketing to them.

3. Integrating your marketing efforts by layering and timing your plan well will enable you to set realistic goals and prove success. We do this for each of our centers and our company overall.  This will help determine what works and what doesn’t for improved future plans.

4. It is true that marketing is easier when you are targeting someone who is already in need, but when it comes to healthcare that might not be the best approach, because like John said, a patient isn’t going to leave their physician.  Consider the way that Susan G. Komen promotes Early Detection; they are not selling a product, rather awareness, which eventually targets someone in need.  Independent facilities can do the same thing.

5. Always use a call-to-action in marketing because you want to make capturing leads as easy on the potential client as possible.  You do not want these un-captured leads running around, unsure of what to do next.  With a clear, clever and HELPFUL call-to-action, you will create a mutually beneficial next step in your relationship with that lead or patient or referring physician, really whoever it is that you are targeting.

Health Care’s 2012 MVP: Self-Pay

As reported in the Wall Street Journal and NY Times, the Kaiser Family Foundation Health Research Survey reported that healthcare insurance premiums paid by employers rose by 8% in 2011.  The “WOW” factor is increasingly more powerful when paralleled by the fact that premiums should have slowed as more employers elected to offer high deductible plans.  The rapid growth of both employer premiums and high deductible plans foreshadows the upcoming trend for healthcare providers, that patient responsibility will become a major player, even MVP, in healthcare discourse.

I have the unfortunate dilemma of balancing health care dollars.  On one hand, my facilities and the healthcare clients we serve face continuous reimbursement cuts.  On the other hand, our company and employees are paying more each year for our own healthcare.  And yes, our premiums rose by 8% last year as well. Over the past five years, we have seen close to 25% decreases in payments.  Imagine the impact a quarter of your paycheck disappearing would have on you.  Now imagine your expenses increasing the same amount too.  It’s a truly unfortunate dilemma, so what is the key to combating this situation?

With the unique vantage point I hold for both sides of the provider-patient relationship, I understand the challenges the nation faces in dealing with limited healthcare dollars.  You have heard it before, “the US system is broken”.   Indeed it would seem so, as one side of the political spectrum screams for our government to pay for healthcare it obviously cannot afford while the other side of the spectrum demands that patients pay for their own care.  So what happens when these patients must resort to this?

In a more perfect world, void of the challenges that our current system faces, companies and the government would be able to afford catastrophic healthcare policies.  By catastrophic, I mean big-ticket healthcare events such as hospitalization, debilitating diseases treatment like cancer care, or end-life events.   Large healthcare insurance companies could use the actuarial tools their cousins in the life insurance industry use.  In other words, if it is true as the pundits say that “most of the healthcare costs occur the last year of one’s life” then the health insurance companies could surely hedge for a catastrophic event in a patients life, however doing so would still require the patient to take on some responsibility.

Patients would be required to pay for normal doctors visits, medication, diagnostic testing, however these patients, or their companies, could be awarded reduced premiums by maintaining healthier lifestyles and receiving wellness check-ups, in much the same way that good drivers are awarded lower costs in the auto industry.   Patients paying for this level of healthcare would create a market where they are more cognizant of their health dollar.   In the near future, tools are being developed to help patients understand the true costs of their healthcare, thus enabling them to negotiate what they pay out of pocket.

Hogwash, one might say to the notion of patients actually paying for their own healthcare.   In reality self-payers are growing increasingly more popular as healthcare players.  With 17% of employees in high deductible plans, these plans have grown 25% in the last year.  The average family of four already pays close to $3500 out of their pocket for their care and you can ask any physician group, they will tell you that the self-pay component is growing.   Allow me to suggest that providers, insurance companies, and patients accept this new reality, because in the same way that paper phone books, Blockbuster, and disposable cameras have become obsolete, so will the notion that patients will be protected by their insurance, so as not to have to pay for a large portion of their health bill.  Yes, patient responsibility for payment can seem daunting, like picking up the tab for an expensive dinner you know you cannot afford, but forward thinking is the key.  Self-pay is the new player, and price shopping is the winning game plan.

Snapshot of One Of Our Facilities: Open MRI of Pueblo

   Open MRI of Pueblo is one of our locally owned and operated independent diagnostic imaging centers located in Pueblo, Colorado.  As an independently run facility, Open MRI of Pueblo is able to remain committed to serving the residents of Pueblo and the surrounding areas with the most advanced clinical procedures, while preserving the highest standard of care.

              

  This dedication to a blend of affordable diagnostic imaging and the highest quality in care has been recently made evident by the purchase of Hitachi’s High-Field MR System, the OASIS.  This will be the first Outpatient High-Field Open MR System in the entire state of Colorado. Named by KLAS, the leading healthcare research firm, as the highest ranked MR System currently on the market, The Hitachi OASIS MR is simply the best option for patients when it comes to innovative yet comfortable technology.  The magnet has received awards for the second year in a row at this week’s RSNA 2011 reception.

                      

   By focusing on three core competencies; service, technology and care, Open MRI of Pueblo has established a reputation for their exceptional attention to the patient experience.  The arrival of Hitachi’s OASIS encompasses all three of those aspects of success the staff at Open MRI of Pueblo strive for.  Further commitment to the community is evident by the facility’s over 40,000 patients treated since its opening in 2004.  Dr. William M. Needell, Open MRI of Pueblo’s onsite radiologist, has been with the center since it opened, and has spent 20 out of his 26 years of experience in the radiology field, focusing on Hitachi MR Systems.  The blend of Dr. Needell’s exceptional skills and knowledge and the Open MRI of Pueblo’s dedicated staff, makes for an unparalleled health care experience, especially in light of the new magnet, which

Unique Marketing Efforts to Improve Patient Volume

From the perspective of a healthcare marketing professional, improvement of patient volume within a practice is often the number one priority.  So when it comes to executing that duty, no stone is left un-turned.   In the past, physician referrals were easier to come by, but with physicians taking on more capabilities through the conglomeration of practices, independent practices have often times been left high and dry.

However, with health care changes leading to an increase in pricing transparency, patient experience is now at the forefront of reasons patients select certain providers.  Marketing professionals are able to utilize their practice’s patient experience as a selling point, however modern technology has required them to go beyond engaging in helpful dialogue with referring physician offices and direct marketing, and has shifted into adventures in social media.

Turn Up The Volume, a blog dedicated to providing insights to increasing patient volume, discusses some of our favorite unique marketing efforts.  The blog even suggests using “celebrity” endorsements to drive patient volume, which seems funny, but the writers quote an article from the Huffington Post to back up the facts.

So, marketing professionals, this is your call out.  The key is creativity and a passion for delivering your message: that your practice is simply the best option for patients. I mean, with a well thought out and planned execution, why can’t “Because Snoop Dogg Says So” be a successful marketing campaign?