In 2020, 26% of surveyed healthcare payers said that more than half of their provider networks still don’t accept ERA/EFT (Trends in Healthcare Payments Annual Report). Despite the HHS operating rule on EFT standards which went into effect in 2014 and mandated that payers had to adopt ERA/EFT, 84% of surveyed healthcare providers indicated they continue to receive paper checks from one or more payers.
The sooner providers accept electronic payments, the more money payers and providers can save. So how can you convince the remaining holdouts in your provider network to adopt electronic payments? Here are a few tips:
Know Your Providers
Take the time to analyze how your providers like to communicate with you. Are they more likely to respond to an email, letter or fax? Or, do they seek out information on their own by visiting your website? Use this information to target them effectively.
Tip: Measure the progress of your electronic adoption campaigns and regularly analyze which methods are most successful.
Focus on Education
Providers like to know exactly how a process change will affect their organizations before they take action, so give them as much information upfront as you can. Emphasize the benefits of electronic payments to providers (ex: get paid faster, reduce time spent on reconciliation) in a clear, easy-to-read format.
Tip: Document the questions and objections received from your providers and tailor your messaging to address them upfront.
Simplify Enrollment
Once your providers are on board with receiving electronic payments, make the enrollment process simple and quick and make enrollment forms easily accessible.
Learn more about best practices with ERA/EFT.