The Missing Link To Lower Healthcare Costs

Despite faster, more secure and less costly alternatives, many U.S. employers continue to rely on checks and paper remittances when paying employee healthcare expenses. In fact, recent studies suggest check payments account for as much as 1.75 billion in healthcare payments annually.

However, navigating away from this practice is becoming a necessity as the cost of healthcare coverage rises, according to Chase Whitmore, director of Healthcare Sales at TSYS.

Speaking to PYMNTS.com, Whitmore provided his analysis of the rising cost of healthcare and the role the payments industry is playing in easing this concern (Jump to 0:15) , categorizing the current healthcare industry as one where employers are faced with new considerations when designing benefits packages. Namely, employers must decide whether to absorb healthcare cost increases to please employees or pass these costs along.

These challenges, however, aren’t without solutions. Whitmore indicates that the third-party market has risen to the challenge, providing higher deductible health plans, health reimbursement arrangements and health savings accounts. These products, in turn, grant employers more stable costs as well as savings that allow them to fund employee HRA/HSA accounts.

“Payment cards are a huge part of successful programs like this,” Whitmore said. “Payment cards allow immediate and convenient access to each participant’s HSA and HRA funds when they need it most.”

For more on how debit cards are increasingly becoming part of a retail approach to healthcare (Jump to 2:32) , how HRA accounts can be tailored to meet the needs and objectives of employers (Jump to 4:03 ) and TSYS’ analysis of current healthcare market trends (Jump to 6:00) , listen to our full podcast with Whitmore below.

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Chase Whitmore, director of sales, TSYS Healthcare

Chase Whitmore is director of sales for TSYS Healthcare, a leader in the burgeoning market of healthcare payments and incentives. Chase has more than a decade of sales and account management experience in healthcare technology and debit card solutions. He is certified in Flexible Compensation by the Employers Council on Flexible Compensation and has achieved eligibility for the CFC Instructor designation. Chase attended the University of Arkansas, where he studied Advertising and Public Relations. Prior to joining TSYS Healthcare, he was a senior sales specialist and account executive within the healthcare software industry.