When Cost Factors into Healthcare Decision-Making: 3 Insights for Healthcare Revenue Cycle

By continually seeking ways to ease the financial strain of care, hospitals and health systems can position themselves as a trusted advisor for the communities they serve. It’s an approach that is vital to maintaining relationships and revenue. A recent survey shows 44% of consumers have delayed care in the past year due to cost concerns, up from 25% a year ago, while paycheck-to-paycheck consumers are changing their purchasing patterns due to rising financial insecurity. These are signs that inflation is hitting home literally necessitating new approaches for easing consumers’ financial worries about care. Since March 2020, hospitals and health systems have witnessed the impact of economic uncertainty on healthcare decision making by consumers. A Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) survey published this past summer found four out of 10 consumers struggle to afford healthcare. The same proportion of consumers have delayed care in the past year due to cost, according to the KFF survey up from 12% in 2021.