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Episode 144: Understanding Patient Financing in 2023
https://youtu.be/JX4v9A5ooRc
What role does patient financing play in helping patients receive the type of treatment they're looking for?
Below, we’ve compiled the key points discussed in the Jameson Files Episode 144. To enjoy the full episode you can watch on YouTube or listen to our podcast on iTunes, Google Play, or Spotify.
Jameson Files Episode 144 —How Patient Financing Meets the Needs of Your Patients
Carrie Webber:
Sameer is the Vice President of Alliances for Care Credit, what we believe to be the premier patient financing program in the dental profession and in other professions outside of dentistry. You've been in the arena for many years, Sameer, so today I want to talk about the need for patient financing from the perspective of your patients. We often think about how this serves me as the doctor, but I would like for all of us in the dental realm to think about what role does patient financing play in helping patients receive the type of treatment they're looking for?
So Sameer, to begin, could you share with us a brief life history of CareCredit?
Sameer Baseen:
Absolutely. First of all, thank you for having me. This is a topic that I feel very passionate about, and I think you started out by stating it from a patient's perspective, right? Keeping the patient as the center point has always been CareCredit’s goal, and now we have been serving the profession for 35 years. Everything that we do literally always first asks what is best for the patient. And of course, what's best for our doctors and their teams too.
Talking about money is not everybody's comfort zone, and we understand that. So having the tools and resources always evolving according to the needs of the day serves our patients by helping them get the dentistry they want rather than having to put their health as secondary.
Demand for Patient Financing is Growing
Carrie Webber:
Right. So thinking of it from the patient perspective, I know that CareCredit and Synchrony do a great deal of continuous study. You really try to keep your finger on the pulse of consumer behavior—what patients are looking for, what are their obstacles to care, what seems to be the need. So for you, what is the demand for patient financing from the consumer standpoint that you all are seeing today in dentistry?
Sameer Baseen:
The demand has not been any different except that it has actually grown. More patients are more aware of their oral health and how it impacts their overall health. So they're more educated and asking for those options. Of course, when the economy is not doing well, patients don't want to use their cash. They still want and believe in the treatment that's being offered. But I think the biggest obstacle is our assumption that money, time and fear are always the reasons patients don't accept treatment.
I would actually put the value of dentistry in there. Are we educating the patients enough that they understand why this is important for them before we ever talk about money and time and fear?
So if you see that demand has increased, what is the real obstacle? If we are only focusing on if the patient gets approved for it, that means we have missed the mark somewhere. If the patient feels like they need to go have a conversation at home and discuss with somebody else, or they want to think about it, what did they want to think about?
In our profession, the value of dentistry has always been around an idea that if it's not broken, bleeding or hurting, it's not urgent. And I feel that when we look at where the profession is, where the markets are, where the consumers are, demand has been constantly increasing. But remember, one of the things I always say is people don't buy cars; they buy car payments. They don't buy houses; they buy mortgage payments. And in some cases the dental investment needed could be just as big as a car. It's just that when it comes to that kind of dollar amount, people are used to having an option presented to them immediately.
Patients Expect a Financing Option
Carrie Webber:
Yes. That's a great point. Would you agree that there's a likelihood that patients are coming in expecting that there will be a monthly payment option presented to them because we have come to expect that in any major investment that we make?
Sameer Baseen:
Correct.
Carrie Webber:
So while we as dental practices may be avoiding it or saving it in the back pocket for a last resort, that puts an emphasis on bringing that to the forefront with every other option that you have available because it could be a patient of all levels of financial capabilities that may be interested in taking care of their dentistry in that way. When I interviewed Dr. Mark Hyman on the podcast, we talked about how when we assume for our patients, we're doing such a disservice for them. I agree with you also on the value piece. ADA surveys often show that with all the different reasons, in addition to cost, time, and fear, that need shows up. I always think that means perceived need. If they're not coming to the dentist because of a lack of need, then that is a blaring sign that there is no value in the care. There is no value in the treatment. At Jameson we always teach the four pillars of a patient practice partnership, and they are trust, need, urgency and value. The value has to be in place before the financial conversations take place.
Sameer Baseen:
Absolutely.
Lack of Communicating About Financing Delays Treatment
Carrie Webber:
So you are saying that you see the need; patients are seeking it out. Whether the practices are talking about it as an option to them could be left to be determined. Are the patients looking for it themselves? Are they finding Care Credit without the dental practice's help?
Sameer Baseen:
There's a little bit of both. When a patient comes into your practice, you go over the treatment that they need, and then we tell them that their benefits don't really cover anything. We tell them that it is urgent. We tell them that we are expecting them to pay 3, 4, 5, 7,000 up front. I, as a patient, am thinking that it's not hurting, it's not bleeding, and it's not broken. With holidays coming, do I really want to spend that? If it's not the holidays, it's probably spring break. If it's not the spring break, it's the summer break. If it's not summer break, it's back to school. And then we are back to holidays. There will always be a reason. When we see Care Credit, credit card, or any kind of patient financing offered, it is offered as a product versus part of their process. It's always an afterthought. It's always when the patient says, “Well let me think about it. I'll call you back.”
Carrie Webber:
We say, “Hey, there's one more thing. Here, take this brochure. Just take this brochure while you go home to think about it and not call me back.”
Sameer Baseen:
That's exactly it. To a patient it's obviously not that important because otherwise you would have presented it up front.
Carrie Webber:
Yes.
Sameer Baseen:
Every treatment that you talked about, even some of the things that you mentioned that we can wait for 3, 4, 5 months, you discussed it up front. Money was obviously not as important, otherwise you would have gone over every option that I have. I think that one of the myths is that we want everybody to apply for patient financing.
Carrie Webber:
Yes.
Sameer Baseen:
What we want is for the patients to finally say yes, whether it's by check, or credit card, or cash, or patient financing. The challenge that I have seen over the years is that we will not talk about it until the patient actually brings it up. Let's think about it. How many times will a patient actually come out and say, “Do you have any patient financing?” It becomes uncomfortable. If it's uncomfortable for you as a team member to have a conversation about money, it’s uncomfortable for the patient to also ask for that.
Carrie Webber:
Yes.
Sameer Baseen:
So if you are keeping it as a dirty secret, then that's where it stays. If you look at your diagnosed and unscheduled report, it will give you a blaring report of where and how we can address that.
Myths Concerning Patient Financing
Carrie Webber:
Let's go there. Let's debunk the myths– Myth Busters: Patient Financing Edition. Number one is a good patient financing company does not want you to use patient financing on every single patient. They want you to use it as the tool to help the patients that are looking for patient financing as their solution.
Sameer Baseen:
Exactly.
Carrie Webber:
What are some of the other myths that you hear?
Sameer Baseen:
One of them is that all our patients pay cash, or that patient financing is only for large cases, or people who have money, or people who don't have money. It's like the extreme ends. Patient financing is an option, just like anything else. Think about your personal life. Have you ever financed? It has nothing to do with whether you can afford it or not as far as the product or service that you're about to buy. It is about giving the option. It’s not that it's only for certain demographics. I had one doctor tell me the reason rich people stay rich is because they use somebody's else's money. That’s one way to look at it. It has nothing to do with if the product is only for a certain demographic. It's for everyone. That's why I said product, process. Have that conversation. If I was to ask you if implants are for only certain demographics, you're going to say, “No”.
Carrie Webber:
Right.
Sameer Baseen:
It's the standard of care. It's a great option, and I would offer it to you. It doesn't matter what your credit score is. It's the same thing. It's the same service, so think of it from that aspect. So it's another myth that everybody pays cash.
View all episodes
By The Jameson Group, LLC
5
55 ratings
https://youtu.be/JX4v9A5ooRc
What role does patient financing play in helping patients receive the type of treatment they're looking for?
Below, we’ve compiled the key points discussed in the Jameson Files Episode 144. To enjoy the full episode you can watch on YouTube or listen to our podcast on iTunes, Google Play, or Spotify.
Jameson Files Episode 144 —How Patient Financing Meets the Needs of Your Patients
Carrie Webber:
Sameer is the Vice President of Alliances for Care Credit, what we believe to be the premier patient financing program in the dental profession and in other professions outside of dentistry. You've been in the arena for many years, Sameer, so today I want to talk about the need for patient financing from the perspective of your patients. We often think about how this serves me as the doctor, but I would like for all of us in the dental realm to think about what role does patient financing play in helping patients receive the type of treatment they're looking for?
So Sameer, to begin, could you share with us a brief life history of CareCredit?
Sameer Baseen:
Absolutely. First of all, thank you for having me. This is a topic that I feel very passionate about, and I think you started out by stating it from a patient's perspective, right? Keeping the patient as the center point has always been CareCredit’s goal, and now we have been serving the profession for 35 years. Everything that we do literally always first asks what is best for the patient. And of course, what's best for our doctors and their teams too.
Talking about money is not everybody's comfort zone, and we understand that. So having the tools and resources always evolving according to the needs of the day serves our patients by helping them get the dentistry they want rather than having to put their health as secondary.
Demand for Patient Financing is Growing
Carrie Webber:
Right. So thinking of it from the patient perspective, I know that CareCredit and Synchrony do a great deal of continuous study. You really try to keep your finger on the pulse of consumer behavior—what patients are looking for, what are their obstacles to care, what seems to be the need. So for you, what is the demand for patient financing from the consumer standpoint that you all are seeing today in dentistry?
Sameer Baseen:
The demand has not been any different except that it has actually grown. More patients are more aware of their oral health and how it impacts their overall health. So they're more educated and asking for those options. Of course, when the economy is not doing well, patients don't want to use their cash. They still want and believe in the treatment that's being offered. But I think the biggest obstacle is our assumption that money, time and fear are always the reasons patients don't accept treatment.
I would actually put the value of dentistry in there. Are we educating the patients enough that they understand why this is important for them before we ever talk about money and time and fear?
So if you see that demand has increased, what is the real obstacle? If we are only focusing on if the patient gets approved for it, that means we have missed the mark somewhere. If the patient feels like they need to go have a conversation at home and discuss with somebody else, or they want to think about it, what did they want to think about?
In our profession, the value of dentistry has always been around an idea that if it's not broken, bleeding or hurting, it's not urgent. And I feel that when we look at where the profession is, where the markets are, where the consumers are, demand has been constantly increasing. But remember, one of the things I always say is people don't buy cars; they buy car payments. They don't buy houses; they buy mortgage payments. And in some cases the dental investment needed could be just as big as a car. It's just that when it comes to that kind of dollar amount, people are used to having an option presented to them immediately.
Patients Expect a Financing Option
Carrie Webber:
Yes. That's a great point. Would you agree that there's a likelihood that patients are coming in expecting that there will be a monthly payment option presented to them because we have come to expect that in any major investment that we make?
Sameer Baseen:
Correct.
Carrie Webber:
So while we as dental practices may be avoiding it or saving it in the back pocket for a last resort, that puts an emphasis on bringing that to the forefront with every other option that you have available because it could be a patient of all levels of financial capabilities that may be interested in taking care of their dentistry in that way. When I interviewed Dr. Mark Hyman on the podcast, we talked about how when we assume for our patients, we're doing such a disservice for them. I agree with you also on the value piece. ADA surveys often show that with all the different reasons, in addition to cost, time, and fear, that need shows up. I always think that means perceived need. If they're not coming to the dentist because of a lack of need, then that is a blaring sign that there is no value in the care. There is no value in the treatment. At Jameson we always teach the four pillars of a patient practice partnership, and they are trust, need, urgency and value. The value has to be in place before the financial conversations take place.
Sameer Baseen:
Absolutely.
Lack of Communicating About Financing Delays Treatment
Carrie Webber:
So you are saying that you see the need; patients are seeking it out. Whether the practices are talking about it as an option to them could be left to be determined. Are the patients looking for it themselves? Are they finding Care Credit without the dental practice's help?
Sameer Baseen:
There's a little bit of both. When a patient comes into your practice, you go over the treatment that they need, and then we tell them that their benefits don't really cover anything. We tell them that it is urgent. We tell them that we are expecting them to pay 3, 4, 5, 7,000 up front. I, as a patient, am thinking that it's not hurting, it's not bleeding, and it's not broken. With holidays coming, do I really want to spend that? If it's not the holidays, it's probably spring break. If it's not the spring break, it's the summer break. If it's not summer break, it's back to school. And then we are back to holidays. There will always be a reason. When we see Care Credit, credit card, or any kind of patient financing offered, it is offered as a product versus part of their process. It's always an afterthought. It's always when the patient says, “Well let me think about it. I'll call you back.”
Carrie Webber:
We say, “Hey, there's one more thing. Here, take this brochure. Just take this brochure while you go home to think about it and not call me back.”
Sameer Baseen:
That's exactly it. To a patient it's obviously not that important because otherwise you would have presented it up front.
Carrie Webber:
Yes.
Sameer Baseen:
Every treatment that you talked about, even some of the things that you mentioned that we can wait for 3, 4, 5 months, you discussed it up front. Money was obviously not as important, otherwise you would have gone over every option that I have. I think that one of the myths is that we want everybody to apply for patient financing.
Carrie Webber:
Yes.
Sameer Baseen:
What we want is for the patients to finally say yes, whether it's by check, or credit card, or cash, or patient financing. The challenge that I have seen over the years is that we will not talk about it until the patient actually brings it up. Let's think about it. How many times will a patient actually come out and say, “Do you have any patient financing?” It becomes uncomfortable. If it's uncomfortable for you as a team member to have a conversation about money, it’s uncomfortable for the patient to also ask for that.
Carrie Webber:
Yes.
Sameer Baseen:
So if you are keeping it as a dirty secret, then that's where it stays. If you look at your diagnosed and unscheduled report, it will give you a blaring report of where and how we can address that.
Myths Concerning Patient Financing
Carrie Webber:
Let's go there. Let's debunk the myths– Myth Busters: Patient Financing Edition. Number one is a good patient financing company does not want you to use patient financing on every single patient. They want you to use it as the tool to help the patients that are looking for patient financing as their solution.
Sameer Baseen:
Exactly.
Carrie Webber:
What are some of the other myths that you hear?
Sameer Baseen:
One of them is that all our patients pay cash, or that patient financing is only for large cases, or people who have money, or people who don't have money. It's like the extreme ends. Patient financing is an option, just like anything else. Think about your personal life. Have you ever financed? It has nothing to do with whether you can afford it or not as far as the product or service that you're about to buy. It is about giving the option. It’s not that it's only for certain demographics. I had one doctor tell me the reason rich people stay rich is because they use somebody's else's money. That’s one way to look at it. It has nothing to do with if the product is only for a certain demographic. It's for everyone. That's why I said product, process. Have that conversation. If I was to ask you if implants are for only certain demographics, you're going to say, “No”.
Carrie Webber:
Right.
Sameer Baseen:
It's the standard of care. It's a great option, and I would offer it to you. It doesn't matter what your credit score is. It's the same thing. It's the same service, so think of it from that aspect. So it's another myth that everybody pays cash.