Collecting payments can be difficult and complex for specialty practices. Receiving timely payments, managing and coordinating all the different types of payments used by patients and communicating with patients effectively are just a few of the challenges specialty providers have to navigate. This leads to cash flow issues and inefficiency in the practice as a whole. Patients, on the other hand, have to deal with their own suite of problems, such as cost, how much of bill they owe and how to pay their bills.

It is crucial for specialty practices to streamline and simplify the payments process as much as possible. Some practices have already begun doing so by turning to automated payment systems. These systems make it easier for patients to both view and pay their bills. They include many options for payment, with some even including the ability to use Google or Apple Pay.

The benefits of automated payment systems for patients are clear now, but what exactly do they do for providers? Keep reading for 3 benefits automated payments can bring to your specialty practice.

1. Saving Time
   Patient burden for healthcare payments is increasing; around 23 million Americans with employer insurance have high premium contributions or high out-of-pocket costs relative to income. Such a large percentage of payments coming directly from patients means practice staff spend a great deal of time chasing payments. A streamlined process that allows patients to easily make all of their payments will not only lead to higher collections, it will also save the time that would otherwise be spent calling and emailing patients to remind them their payments are due.Many of these systems also offer automated reminders that can be set up to go out at certain times. These can be scheduled so that they are sent out to patients at regular intervals via either text or email.

2. Increased revenue
   Though the pandemic might be behind us now, most healthcare practices are still dealing with the financial fallout it left in its wake. 57% of specialty practices saw a decline of around 30% in patient volume; that is not a percentage small enough to simply shrug off. Though patient numbers have now stabilized, the industry as a whole still has to reckon with the massive loss of revenue it suffered for a not insignificant amount of time. To further complicate matters, we have emerged into a society that makes far greater use of digital payment methods than before. With patients going digital, practices must follow in order to keep up.Surveys have shown that there is a strong desire among US consumers for more modern options in their services. For healthcare practices these include patient portals, mobile apps, contactless payments and QR code payment support. Implementing some of these changes will make it easier for patients to pay and for staff to collect those payments, improving the practice’s overall financial health.

3. Enhanced patient experience
   The patient experience is at the core of the modern patient-centric healthcare experience. With the coming of value-based care, improving the patient experience and, by extension, patient outcomes are more important than ever. For practices, there is no better way of building strong and long-lasting relationships with your patients that will keep them coming back whenever they need healthcare services.Contactless payments became the norm across industries during the pandemic. In healthcare they serve as a great way to improve the patient experience. 66 percent of patients say they would consider changing providers for a better payment experience, meaning any practices slow on the uptake with regards to offering contactless payments may soon find themselves bleeding patients. Telehealth has also experienced a massive boost in popularity during the pandemic, and contactless, digital payments go hand-in-hand with a healthcare experience that doesn’t require patients be physically present at the doctor’s office.