Survey/Report

Self-Pay and the Benefits of Prospective Patient Engagement

Self-Pay and the Benefits of Prospective Patient Engagement

HFMA Self-Pay Survey sponsored by Parallon

HFMA researchers—with sponsorship from Parallon―surveyed senior finance executives and revenue cycle leaders to learn about their organizations' self-pay processes and patient financial engagement efforts. Survey findings paint a picture of the current state of patient collections and reveal key areas for improvement, including pre-service pricing, automation, and presumptive charity care.

> Full survey results may be accessed at hfma.org/selfpaystudy 

Times are Changing

FACT 1:  
Outpatient pre and point-of-service collections growing

Percent indicating mandatory collections

Outpatient pre and point-of-service collections growing

FACT 2:
The patient financial experience is evolving

Increased resources for process improvement and fixing processes versus correcting


Opportunities to Improve Capabilities

FACT 1:
Pre-Service Pricing

20 percent are able to consistently offer pricing prior to service

20 percent are able to consistently offer pricing prior to service

FACT 2:
Automating Pre-Service

42 percent have low capabilities in automating pre-service processes

42 percent have low capabilities in automating pre-service processes

FACT 3:
Presumptive Charity Care

41 percent have low capabilities in presumptive charity care 

41 percent have low capabilities in presumptive charity care

Patients are Surprised by Out-Of-Pocket Costs

FACT 1:
74 percent of patients are able to pay out-of-pocket costs

*McKinsey Quarterly, The Next Wave of Change for US Healthcare Payments, May 2010

74 percent of patients are able to pay out-of-pocket costs

FACT 2:
61 percent are surprised by these costs

*TransUnion Healthcare Survey Finds Cost Transparency is a Top Priority for Patients

61 percent are surprised by these costs

Clear Benefits to Engaging Patients in Payment

  • Increased patient satisfaction 

  • Decreased write-offs 

  • Greater efficiency 

  • Reduced rework 

  • Speedier cash flow 

  • Limited no-shows 

Visit hfma.org to

Download full survey results