Increasing office collections An easy question gets results


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Issue 13 - September 2004

Increasing office collections
An easy question gets results
by Kathy Mills Chang

What’s the best way to increase collections in the office? The answer is so easy, you’ll wonder why you didn’t think of it in the first place: Ask for payment. Simply put: If you don’t ask, you don’t get.

Of course, asking in itself may not be enough. A lot has to do with the delivery of your request. In most chiropractic offices, it is the CA who does — or is supposed to do — the asking. Here are some practical tips directed to the CA on how to ask for payment from patients:

• Ask as if you expect to get it. When you enter a financial discussion with a patient, go into it with the conviction that the patient will accept the care plan the doctor has recommended and as well as the financial plan.

When you ask with a positive expectation, your attitude will come across to the patient. But if you expect the patient will turn down the recommendations, you have already lost.

• Be specific when you ask. When you talk finances, be prepared. Collect the doctor’s treatment plan, the insurance verification information and anything else you will need to formulate an appropriate financial plan with the patient.

If you are asking for payment for a single date of service, know the service rendered and what it entailed and what the fee for that service was. Be prepared to give whatever explanation is necessary.

• Know when to stop talking. One of the biggest mistakes made in presenting a plan or asking for payment is filling the silence while waiting for a reply from the patient. State your request, then wait.

For example: Say, “Mrs. Jones, that will be $45 for today.” Make good eye contact and wait. Prepare yourself for rejection, such as: “I’m sorry, I didn’t bring my check book.”

If that occurs, respond with an alternative, “Not a problem. We accept Visa and MasterCard as well as cash.”

A chiropractic value deal
Why are some patients so willing to pay for chiropractic services — and others are not? It’s all a matter of perceived value.

Here are two stories that illustrate the concept of perceived value:

A patient who owned a pool-cleaning service had an employee who was having terrible lower-back pain. Although the worker did not have insurance to cover chiropractic care, the employer referred him to his chiropractor.

The doctor performed a complete orthopedic and neurological examination of the employee, including x-rays of the affected region. He found a significant problem with chronic findings.

The doctor explained the findings to the patient and told him what he believed it would take to provide relief. He offered the pool worker an “at the time of service” payment discount (allowed in his state), which gave the worker an opportunity to save 20 percent by prepaying for services.

The patient immediately dug into his pocket and laid $300 on the counter and said he would come back with the rest. He returned the following day and pulled out wads of crumpled cash totaling the dollar amount necessary to cover the prepayment.

As the worker pulled the money out of his pocket, he told the CA that he realized chiropractic was the answer to his chronic back problems. He also said that according to the report of findings, if he did not get the situation treated, he might not be able to work. And if he couldn’t work, he couldn’t feed his family. Therefore, he begged and borrowed to find the money to pay for the care.

The pool worker had attached a great perceived value to the care the doctor proposed to give him and was willing to go to any length to pay for it.

Contrast that story with a patient who, after being told about her condition and the recommended treatment — and payment plan — said, “No, thanks. I can’t afford it.”

But the next day, the chiropractor ran into her coming out of tanning salon! She put more value into a bronzed face than an ache-free back.

The moral of the first story: Stay out of the patient’s pocketbook, because you don’t know what he or she can or can’t afford.

And of the second? Relate the benefit of chiropractic to the perceived value of the patient. Unless a patient sees that value, he or she will say “no.”

If you are attempting to collect a prepayment for a block of treatment, explain the benefits of the plan and how much the payments will be, then stop talking and wait.

• Be aware of resistance. Not everyone is able to prepay for care, unless you can make it affordable with budget-sized payments.

Prepare ahead of time the alternatives you have available for the patient. For example: If a patient is unable to prepay for 24 visits, offer a plan for 12. If a patient can’t pay for a visit’s charges, offer to provide a pre-addressed and stamped envelope he can mail back with the payment as soon as he reaches home.

• Don’t be afraid of ‘No!’ Asking for payment or offering a prepayment plan will not be effective every time.

If asking for what you want doesn’t make it happen, be prepared to say, “Next!” You might have to get through five no’s to get to one yes. Don’t give up if you experience resistance right away.

The person who asks the question controls the conversation. Not only is it your responsibility to ask for and collect payments from patients, it is a part of the healing process. Patients who pay for their care stay faithful and get better quicker.

Kathy Mills Chang is a senior coach with Breakthrough Coaching. She can be reached for comments or questions at info@mybreakthrough.com.

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