The No Surprises Act of 2020 took effect this January, putting physicians and health systems on notice that large, unexpected bills after the fact aren’t acceptable anymore — and leaving many providers wondering how this sweeping legislation will affect their bottom line.
This is a potential shot in the arm for consumer financing solutions that have proliferated in recent years, as installment plans and payment agreements provide patients who know what they owe with a way to cope with healthcare costs that seem to be rising exponentially every year.
As with most financing programs in the space, CareCredit works just like a regular credit card, as long as you’re spending on healthcare. With over 60% of Americans living paycheck to paycheck and inflation bearing down, it’s an ideal time for patients and providers to become conversant with the financing options available.
Starting out as DenCharge, a dental financing solution, and then expanding to CareCredit and today Synchrony Health and Wellness, Synchrony Senior Vice President and General Manager of Health Systems Shannon Burke told PYMNTS the company has quickly expanded to include adjacent health services — cosmetic, vision and audiology — and crossed over by 2018 to cover other specialties, along with primary care and now wellness.
Given the ongoing economic and health crises, Burke said the timing is ideal for hospitals and providers to adopt healthcare financing.
“If we just think about the fact that…
