Prime Healthcare partners with Synchrony on credit card financing options
The financing option integrates care delivery with revenue cycle management, VP says.
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Prime Healthcare is partnering with financial services company Synchrony to offer patients a healthcare credit card for pre-care, point-of-care and post-care payment. Financing options to Synchrony's CareCredit include the ability to pay over time.
Patients can apply for the credit card on a mobile device or computer, in a provider's office, or over-the-phone. A credit decision is made within seconds, and, upon approval, applicants can use the credit card to pay bills immediately.
Patients can select from short-term and long-term financing options including deferred interest if paid in full within 6, 12, 18 or 24 months. There is a reduced annual percentage rate with fixed monthly payments for 24, 36, 48 or 60 month options.
A CareCredit payment calculator helps estimate their monthly payments based on the amount of care financed and the offer selected.
WHY THIS MATTERS
Credit card payment ensures hospitals are paid for their services upfront.
The financing option integrates care delivery with revenue cycle management, according to Sunitha Reddy, vice president of Operations of Prime Healthcare.
"Integrating care delivery with revenue cycle management is critical in an increasingly consumer-focused healthcare market," Reddy said. "Implementing CareCredit solutions allows us the ability to offer flexible healthcare financing options that can help meet the unique and evolving needs of our patients while also improving their well-being and experience."
The new payment option helps patients pay out-of-pocket expenses, according to Alberto Casellas, CEO of Synchrony's Health and Wellness Platform.
"As out-of-pocket healthcare expenses continue to increase, patients are seeking providers that can address both the clinical and financial aspects of their healthcare experience. Our partnership with Prime Healthcare will help Prime Healthcare's patients pay for the care they need while also streamlining the health system's payments processes and financial workflows."
THE LARGER TREND
Patient out-of-pocket costs that are not covered by health insurance can include deductibles, coinsurance, copayments and costs for non-covered healthcare services.
Over five years, between 2015 and 2019, patient out-of-pocket spending increased $91 per person, according to a report from the Health Care Cost Institute. The total average annual healthcare spend for people with employer-sponsored insurance rose 2.9%, to $6,001 per person in 2019, according to the institute's annual Health Care Cost and Utilization Report. Between 2015 and 2019, spending increased by 21.8%, or $1,074 per person.
Prime Healthcare, headquartered in California, is a physician-founded-and-led health system with 45 hospitals in 14 states.
Synchrony founded the CareCredit credit card more than 30 years ago. It is accepted at more than 250,000 provider and health-focused retail locations.
Twitter: @SusanJMorse
Email the writer: susan.morse@himssmedia.com
