64% of Patients Pay Out-of-Pocket Costs for Healthcare Visits

Individuals are paying more – and more often – for their healthcare visits. The report “The Payment Cure: How Improving Billing Experiences Impacts Patient Loyalty,” done in collaboration with CareCredit and PYMNTS, found that 64% of more than 3,500 consumers surveyed said they had to pay out-of-pocket costs related to their healthcare.

See also: New Report: Half of US Patients in the Dark About Healthcare Payment Options

Roughly half of those patients who have to pay out of pocket do not know that they have access to flexible payment options. That knowledge could result in (literally) healthier outcomes, as 33% of consumers, citing financial constraints, don’t seek the medical care that they need. More than 20% stated that they were concerned about the costs tied to those treatments, and 11% said their health plans would not cover the costs.

Only a mid-teens percentage of patients were offered flexible payment plans or third-party financing at the point of care – reflected in the data for those who used such plans and those who did not.

Of those consumers that used, or professed interest in using, such financing options, a respective 37% and 41% cited the fact that the plans allowed for other bills to be paid and for expenses to be budgeted.