Coinsurance вЂ“ Often after a patient meets their deductible, their insurance company still only pays for a portion of their bills.For example: If you have a $8,000 deductible, that means that you must pay $8,000 in medical expenses before your health insurance will begin sharing your costs. These out-of-pocket expenses include prescriptions, sick visits, hospital stays, and medical procedures. Deductibles вЂ“ A deductible is the amount of money a patient must pay out-of-pocket before their insurance pays anything.Deductibles and coinsurance do not negate monthly premiums, though they are paid on top of them. Most patients now deal with health insurance that features either a high deductible or coinsurance вЂ“ or a combination of both. The traditional model of copays is quickly going out of style. While some patients may dislike the trend, it is allowing doctors to stay in business. Many doctors and hospitals are even adopting payment plans as a way to help patients cover costs, similar to other industries that deliver higher-dollar products and services. Office space, utilities, technology, medical equipment, andВ staff are all necessary for patient care вЂ“ but these items all cost money.Д«y moving to the POS collection model, providers are finding that they can spend less time billing patients and more time treating them. When you combine this reimbursement uncertainty with patient non-payment, many providers are left struggling to pay their office bills. The reimbursement rates that doctors receive from insurance companies are also constantly changing. Since so many people are unable to pay their balances, many providers have started to question if they can even stay in business. According to the Academy of Healthcare Revenue, providers have a 70% chance of receiving payment at the time of service if they request it вЂ“ but only a 30% chance of collecting it after a patient leaves the building. With insurance premiums and deductibles continually rising, more and more Americans are having trouble paying their medical bills. Most hospitals and medical providers who conduct POS collections accept cash, checks, and credit card payments. POS collections can also include prior balances or payment plan payments. POS collections ask everyone to pay, from patients who pay solely out-of-pocket to those who are insured and need to pay either a deductible, copay, or coinsurance amount.

In general, a provider who participates in POS collections will ask for payment of a proposed service sometime before the service is rendered, up to the time the patient is discharged or leaves the office. Doctors and hospitals may refer to their POS collections as time-of-service, upfront, or front-end collections. There are many interpretations when it comes to point-of-service (POS) collections. While the movement may not make everyone happy, it may be the only way to keep doctors in business.

Many providers are switching to point-of-service collections to curtail their losses, asking patients to pay for services before leaving the office. Doctors have been slow to change their internal billing practices in the past, but now they find themselves swimming in a sea of their own unpaid bills. Many people are choosing high-deductible health plans in order to save on monthly premiums, but this change puts a higher burden on their wallets when it comes time to go to the doctor or fill a prescription. Over the past decade, out-of-pocket healthcare expenses have more than doubled for the average American.

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