Does anybody takes CareCredit in your practice? if you do, please share how it works. Thanks.
Does anybody takes CareCredit in your practice? if you do, please share how it works. Thanks.
Yes we do. It is administered by GE Money Bank, which does a lot of store/retail credit cards, like the Pearle Vision Card, Macy's Card etc. Patients can apply in store, and usually get some sort of answer within minutes. Depending on purchase amount, they can qualify for no interest for a certain term. However, if they have a balance after the no interest term is up, the interest rate is pretty high.
In the state of Maine, they have tightened rules and the cardholder must be present, and show a state issued ID in order to make a purchase with the Care Credit card. Other than that it seems pretty easy. Lowest credit limit amount I've seen approved was $500, most was maybe $2500, so it can be a very helpful tool for patients that don't have the cash on hand to pay for co-pays, glasses, medications, etc.
Also, patients cannot pay their bill to you in person, they must deal direct with GE Money. Sometimes this causes drama, but as long as you can give them a phone number to call, they are usually ok.
Patient, ".. Doctor says I have a subscription for stigmata.. Can you fill that?"
Me, "..Um.. "
We take it. We don't do too much with signing up patients in office but it is convenient for patients who come in with the card already. Only difficult part is that the card cannot be run through our processor. We have to go the the CareCredit website, log in, process payment, print out 2 pages, keep an entire sheet of paper as the receipt. We have only one front desk that handles check in/out. We only get a couple transactions every week so it's not too bad at this point, but CareCredit really slows things down our work flow. Maybe not as much as trying to wrangle a cash payment out of some people though :)
Thanks for the quick respond. I think I am going to try it. But does it cost us any fee other then the normal credit card terminal swipe fee?
A lot of practices have tried and then give up because it's too much of a burden to process....Originally Posted by CalCal
Care Credit charges the merchant 6% of the total for the 6 month interest free offer.
Yes. The back end % is high, and gets higher the longer the terms are extended. Rates are much higher than normal CC processing fees. I still think it's worth taking though.
It takes me all of three minutes to log on to CC and process a transaction.
They gave me a cc machine at no cost to use their card. It is separate from MC/V & others. Their fee is higher, but you have the chance to upgrade the sale, hopefully covering the extra charge. And they pay quickly.
The only pain for Maine now at least is the checking ID's and having them sign ANOTHER slip on top of the credit card slip. but i think its a great way to avoid abuse. It doesn't slow us down really at all, i would rather take care credit then try to wrangle cash out of someone!! Definitely worth a try. and sometimes you will get patients in specifically because you take the care credit, better than because you take their insurance :)
"what i need is a strong drink and a peer group." ... Douglas Adams - Hitchikers Guide to the Galaxy
I used to. Very few people had it and most people in our area didn't want to sign up for it.
We take it. We have a separate machine to run the cards. We don't help people apply for it, but we take it if they already have it. We see about one a day using it. It is very popular around here, a lot of people use it for dentists and vet visits for their pets too.
We use it for any charges > $300 and no other discounts apply since the charge backs can be up to 10%
Like many things, carecredit is tougher for the optical business. If you are facing a huge medical, dental, or veterinary bill it's usually a "no choice" scenario: necessary medical procedure, dental work to alleviate painful problems, or crazy vet cost because you can't live without Pookums. These customers will avidly seek carecredit to get what they (think they) need. Optical expenses are rarely viewed by consumers as a "necessary expense". They shop for eye care like they do a TV: "I got $300 to spend, I'll shop where I can get it for that." Carecredit is not as useful because even if you illustrate to them their $800 in vision care needs, they can simply elect to go without, as they have been and be little worse off, or shop a retail competitor who will always offer an inferior lowball alternative. Some will understand their vision needs and appreciate the carecredit option, but it's not as necessary in our field.
The way we can leverage it to our advantage that other medical professions may not is that we can routinely offer more "wants" than "needs". Someone might want expensive cosmetic dental work, or skin peels, or psychotherapy for their pet turtle, but more medical expenses are fixed needs and there is no upsell to even offer. However, we always have more stuff our customers want. *Everyone* wants the most advanced custom lenses, Rx sun, multiple pairs for fashion, dedicated computer/gaming/reading/hobby eyewear, backups, and maybe even daily contact lenses for occasional use. It's only the expense that keeps them from getting these things they want.
We try to market carecredit ahead of time and encourage patients to sign up before their visit, or even at the time of check in. That way they will be much better able to really fulfill all their visions needs, and even some wants, and with no interest for 6 months. That customer that comes in with $300 planned to spend on eyewear, when confronted with $800 in vision needs, with either stick with the $300 and leave other needs unfulfilled, or will take the advice and shop elsewhere trying to fulfill those needs at or near the $300 mark. If you encourage carecredit ahead of time and they come into (or start) the visit with $500 additional interest free money, those $800 in vision needs can be met that day. If they get a $1000 approval, there is now $500 worth of wants your customer can address as well. A $300 or walk likelihood can be converted into $1300 worth of ideal vision solutions for all the patient's needs and wants. This is of course a best case scenario, but the only thing standing in the way of it happening is the enticing interest free credit and your ability to convey to your patient his true vision needs. That's the only way to make carecredit an advantage for you and your patient, instead of just paying extra fees to carecredit.
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