Presbyopia treatments can be complex, and most of them are not covered by insurance. Offering financing options is a simple, convenient way to streamline the process for patients and practices.

Financing is by no means a new concept that requires long explanation, nor is spending. Generation X and Baby Boomers are savvy, experienced consumers, and most are very familiar with mortgages and car loans. In fact, the newest generation of presbyopes — Generation X — outspends all other generations, including topping Baby Boomers by more than $7,000 a year.¹ However, the older Baby Boomer generation outspends Gen X on health care.²

Convenience Is Key

These patients are also busy with careers and children, and while they appreciate the convenience of a good financing program, they have no time or patience for lengthy application procedures. That’s one reason practices that offer financing appreciate CareCredit.

“We’ve learned that we can’t anticipate patients’ needs based on their presentation to the office, so we offer financing to everyone,” explains Cory Matthews, Patient Services Administrator at Shultz Chang Vision in Northridge, Calif. “We find that even people who can easily pay often choose financing because it is convenient to pay over time. Between one-third and half of our patients finance presbyopia procedures.”

Patti Barkey, COE, the CEO of Bowden Eye & Associates and Eye Surgery Center of North Florida in Jacksonville, also finds that patients are very likely to finance these procedures. At her practice, presbyopia procedures and other services are bundled into packages, which can make financing more convenient than a la carte purchases over time.

“Most of these patients are working professionals, and although they can afford it, sometimes they find that financing is the easiest way to pay quickly and seamlessly,” she says. “The packages are customized to give patients the vision they want in a convenient way. For presbyopia correction treatments, such as Raindrop alone or with LASIK, the package might include the exam and follow-ups, dry eye treatment, such as LipiFlow (TearScience), and/or other services within a 90-day period, as well as the presbyopia treatment. With financing, we give patients a total charge and then break it down over the course of a year.”

Taking a Systematic Approach

Educating patients on the available financing options can be tricky, especially when patients don’t have time to wait and practices need to maintain an efficient workflow. When and how will patients learn about their options? How will they enroll? What roles will physicians and staff play in the process?

At Bowden Eye, strategic planning has made all the difference.

“We find that it’s important to start talking about CareCredit right from the start — at the free screening. At that point, the physician and patient usually determine which treatment approach is best, as well as whether the patient needs treatment for dry eye before surgery. This allows them to lay out the schedule of visits for the future and calculate the total cost,” Barkey says. “At that point, we let patients know they can go to the CareCredit website and prequalify for financing. If they want to finance but don’t want to set it up themselves, a counselor will go through it with them the next time they come to the office.”

The process is similar at Shultz Chang Vision, says Patient Services Administrator Cory Matthews. Some patients are already approved for CareCredit through their dentist or another healthcare provider. For patients who don’t have a credit line, a staff member talks to patients on the phone before the first visit and directs them to the website for pre-approval. Some patients aren’t comfortable using the website, although that’s generally not a problem with new presbyopes. The doctor touches upon the subject during the exam, as well, to make sure patients are aware that the practice offers financing. Finally, once the treatment plan is assembled, Matthews reviews financing with patients in detail to share all of the available options.

“The goal is to make treatment as attainable as possible,” Matthews explains. “After the doctor narrows down the list of potential treatments, I discuss financing programs in detail. Most patients are highly motivated to get high-tech treatment for presbyopia, and that enthusiasm translates to convenient, streamlined payment as well. CareCredit is what I go to first because it is the easiest platform for patients — and the practice.”

When patients don’t sign up for CareCredit on their own, both Matthews and Barkey have staff members sign patients up while they’re in the office.

“In the practice, we use the CareCredit calculators to find estimated payments under various plans, and in about three-quarters of all cases, I go to the website with patients in the office and help them fill out the application,” Matthews says. “It takes about 5 minutes to fill it out, and approval for a credit line is instant. The process is seamless, and I can answer their questions and concerns as we go along.”

Barkey agrees. “What we like most about CareCredit is that the application process is super simple and just takes a few minutes, so it’s very easy to help patients get set up right in our office.”

Using CareCredit’s Helpful Tools

In addition to its fast online approval process, CareCredit offers tools to help practices make financing convenient and accessible to all of their patients. The company offers practices a visit from its practice development team to determine the best ways to implement financing. If practices don’t need that level of assistance, simple tools are available through the CareCredit Advertising Toolkit. For example, practices can embed the CareCredit financing calculator and budget charts in their website and Facebook pages. Those outlets also can link directly to the application. All of these features are customizable, making it easy to blend them with the practice’s page designs.

What’s more, CareCredit’s Custom Apply Link embeds the CareCredit application into the practice’s website, where it can be customized to fit the practice’s financing options. To help practices market services, such as presbyopia treatments, CareCredit offers click-to-post social media content for Facebook and Twitter. The company helps practices directly by including them in the CareCredit Online Provider Locator, which has more than a half million searches per month.

When patients get financing through CareCredit, they can use their account to finance any of the office visits and treatment modalities they wish. That might include new glasses, sunglasses, and contact lenses.

If patients opt for surgical correction, the total out-of-pocket costs, including examinations and follow-up visits, surgery, and possible pre-surgical dry eye examination and treatments, can also be financed.

All of the CareCredit tools help get the word out about financing — and the procedures to be financed — to your target audiences. Gen X and Baby Boomers are following friends on Facebook and checking websites as they research healthcare providers. Putting the financing options in front of them makes saying “yes” to treatment that much easier for patients who are already enthusiastic about avoiding the oft-dreaded reading glasses. •

REFERENCES

1. Henderson S. Spending Habits by Generation. U.S. Department of Labor Blog. Nov. 3, 2016. Available online: https://blog.dol.gov/2016/11/03/spending-habits-by-generation . Last accessed Dec. 6, 2017.
2. Lee L. Where Baby Boomers Spend Their Money and How to Profit From It. Fox Business. September 13, 2016. Accessed online: http://www.foxbusiness.com/features/2016/09/13/where-baby-boomers-spend-their-money-and-how-to-profit-from-it.html . Last accessed Dec. 6, 2017.

ENGAGING WITH GENERATION X AND BABY BOOMERS ABOUT PRESBYOPIA

Patients who are near-sighted may be familiar with taking their glasses off and still being able to read. Patients who want LASIK may not realize their near vision can get worse as they age. Presbyopia affects both Gen X and Baby Boomers, and these changes in their near vision may lead them to research the condition. Still, cost concerns can keep them from achieving the vision they want.

Adding budget-friendly payment options, such as the CareCredit credit card, can help increase treatment acceptance. With CareCredit, patients have a way to pay for vision correction procedures and treatments, so they can move forward with an optimal vision plan. Practices that accept CareCredit have access to resources to help attract and convert patients searching for solutions for presbyopia and aging eyes.

Engage with Patients Searching Online

Gen X and Baby Boomers are comfortable researching health-related information online, which means they may be more educated about presbyopia. However, these patients may not be familiar with available treatment or payment options, so make sure your website provides what they need to make a decision. Resources from the CareCredit Advertising Toolkit can help attract and educate patients as they research advanced vision care and ways to pay.

• Add CareCredit banners and buttons to let visitors to your site know financing is available in your practice.
• Patients can click to apply from your website and come prepared to pay for the vision correction they want.

Social Media Isn’t Just for Millennials

Both Gen X and Baby Boomers use social media to follow their favorite brands, post to their Facebook feed, and tweet their thoughts – sometimes more than Millennials. It’s now easier than ever to connect with patients, which is why social media should be an essential part of your patient outreach. The CareCredit Social Media Toolkit can help make it easy to keep the conversation going online.

• Pre-written posts and tweets about vision correction and financing can help build your social media presence.
• Simply click and share on your practice’s Facebook page or Twitter feed.

Put Financing on Display in Your Practice

Patients may see their parents and grandparents wearing readers, but may not understand it’s due to presbyopia. That’s why it’s so important to educate patients about age-related vision changes and the payment options available to help them see clearly without glasses. With displays from CareCredit, it’s easier for patients to discover you have a financing option available.

• Display cards are a consistent, fast way to inform patients you have financing options they’re searching for.
• Set them in key locations in your practice to attract your patient’s attention.

Keep Convenient Financing Within Reach

CareCredit Direct™ is another way to engage with patients about financing options in your practice. This exclusive web-based software puts financing directly in their hands and allows them to click through and find the options that work for them.

• Patients can learn about financing, calculate monthly payments, and apply on their own.
• Once approved, they can use their CareCredit credit card immediately and schedule their clear lens exchange, corneal inlay, or another procedure.

Build a Relationship Patients Can Trust

As patients get older, they look for providers they can trust to educate them about their eyesight and recommend the best treatment options. By teaching patients about presbyopia and financing options available to help them pay for treatment, you could help more patients enjoy precise vision for years to come.

To learn how to engage effectively with every age group, call the CareCredit Practice Development Team at 800-859-9975, option 1, then 6 to request Generational Insights Series Quick Guides.