E.bill For Health
By Jeffery J Downs
Denver Health is located in downtown Denver Colorado. The socioeconomic class of patients served typically rates in the lowest 10% of the population. On every dollar spent for health care Denver Health collects about a dime. This makes for a difficult time in running a hospital. In order to collect more money faster Denver Health began looking into having their patients view and pay their bill online.
Before introducing electronic bill Denver Health first asked their customers if they would be willing to use it. In order for electronic to work Denver Health would need more than 5% of the patients to say, "Yes, I would view my bill online." The side step was not only view but also pay their bill online.
Before distributing the survey many had their doubts that the customers DH served would be willing to view their bill online. The results were staggering. 30% of those surveyed said they would view their bill online which meant that Denver Health not only had an opportunity to save money on but also on collection notices as well.
After receiving the results of the survey a return on investment model was established with some of the following key factors:
1. Percentage of calls reduced due to online self care and invoice or bill history
2. Reduction in the number of days a bill was outstanding
3. Reduction in the price of Paper, Printing, and Postage
Denver Health determined that their call volume would drop 5% after the launch of Electronic Bill Presentment and Payment (EBPP). National call statistics state that any time a customer service representative answers a call $5 is taken out of the pocket of the company for whom that CSR works. From the data gathered Denver Health would save $10,000
with only 5% drop in calls.
If Denver Health could improve collection performance based on EBPP they would get, rather than $.10 on the dollar close to $.12 on the dollar which would translate into a whopping $120,000 annually added straight to the bottom line, at least one entry level doctor would get paid that year.
Denver Health calculated that the cost to present and receive payment for a paper bill was just north of $2.00. Having only 20% of the patients sign up for online would translate into $125,000 of savings paying for at least one more entry level doctor's salary.
When it is all said and done Denver Health has the potential to save close to one quarter of a million dollars annually all by simply implementing an electronic solution. This solution would only get better as consumers pay all of their bills using online billing.
Is e.Bill healthy for the health care industry? Based on information from the Denver Health survey and return on investment analysis the simple answer would have to be -Yes.
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Jeffery Downs is an experienced solutions specialist and an expert in B2B invoicing and EIPP strategies and solutions. He helps companies slash the cost of invoicing by using industry best practices. Learn more at www.bestpracticesystems.com.
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