Patient communications IT increases self-pay collections for Hackensack Meridian

Staff also want to give patients all available payment options and the ability to pay their bills 365 days a year, 24 hours a day, using online technology. "We had a statement vendor in place and an online payment solution with another vendor," said Anne Goodwill Pritchett, executive vice president of revenue operations at Hackensack Meridian Health. "For example, we created the look and format of our patient billing statements, but there are times when you have to modify the content," she continued. "We wanted that patient responsibility comment code and the definition of what it means inserted on the statement," she added. "The former vendor couldn't do that." Lastly, Hackensack Meridian wanted a digital image of every statement, so if a patient calls with questions, the customer service team member can pull it up and see exactly what the patient received. "They offered print and mail production and return mail processing, statement archiving, and convenient retrieval of patient communications," she continued. The vendor demonstrated to Hackensack Meridian staff how they could quickly make any statement adjustments or changes and how they'd incorporate personalized messages on patient statements that staff could edit as required. "We also wanted to send patients a letter with their first statement explaining their rights under the No Surprises Act. We gave Nordis the letter, and using Expresso, associated the letter to the patient statement, which printed in-line with the statement itself." In addition to helping revenue operations work more efficiently across the organization, staff have accelerated payments and reduced phone calls, all while enhancing patient satisfaction, Pritchett reported. "Once we began utilizing Nordis and began generating patient statements that were clear and easily understood, and in conjunction with increased payment options, we saw an increase in our self-pay collections. "We'll use Expresso to develop, customize and deliver 1.8 million statements, letters and other patient financial communications this year alone," Pritchett reported.