Credit Card On File

1. WHEN I BOOKED MY APPOINTMENT, THE RECEPTIONIST TOLD ME I HAVE TO KEEP A CREDIT CARD ON FILE (CCOF) WITH THE OFFICE. PLEASE EXPLAIN THIS PROCESS.
   1. Short AnswerLong Answer

      This policy entails patients to provide a credit card to our office that is maintained securely. This credit card is used to pay account balances after insurance adjudication; this is the balance that your insurance carrier has deemed the patient’s responsibility (copay, deductible, cost share, coinsurance)

      Orthopedic Surgery San Diego is committed to delivering the best possible patient care. We strive to make our billing process as simple and easy as possible. Please feel free to ask questions once you have read through the following information.  Credit card on file is a rapidly growing trend in the health care industry. The recent implementation of the Affordable Care Act and the Health Exchanges has resulted in a massive increase in patient deductibles; deductible is the money insurance companies want you to pay before your insurance policy kicks in.  This means, although more people have insurance, each patient is paying more out of pocket than ever before for the health related services s/he receives. These factors are driving many doctors’ offices to either squeeze more patients into shorter periods of time or to stop accepting insurance.  We have opted to create a third option for ourselves.  We have decided to focus on becoming more efficient in our office processes instead.  To be able to continue providing the services and care that you deserve in a sustainable way, our office has committed to working smarter.  Looking at our own administrative expenses, the obvious first target for us is the amount of time and money that is spent on billing and collections.  As such and as a matter of policy, we have implemented Credit Card on File.  This policy entails patients to provide a credit card to our office that is maintained securely offsite.
2. HOW DOES CCOF WORK?
   1. Short AnswerLong Answer

      The credit card is stored on a secure offsite server for future transactions.  Click here to read more.

      We run our payments through a HIPAA-compliant, secure practice management software.  When you come in, we will scan your card.  Your payment information is stored on a secure offsite server for future transactions. Credit cards on file will be used to pay account balances after insurance adjudication.  Once you have been seen by our providers, our office will submit a claim to your insurance carrier.  Once your insurance has processed your claim, they will send an Explanation of Benefits (EOB) to you and then to our office a week or two later.  The EOB outlines what  your total patient responsibility is.  You typically receive the EOB before we do, so if you disagree with the patient responsibility amount owed, it is your responsibility to contact your insurance carrier immediately.  We routinely review the accuracy of claims processed by insurance and will contact you if we find a problem.  But if you find a problem, call us up and we’ll investigate it.
3. HOW YOUR CREDIT CARD INFORMATION IS STORED
   1. Short AnswerLong Answer

      Office personnel will not have access to your card.  For your protection, only the last 4 digits of your card will show in our system; we can’t see the card number—minimizing any risk of potential abuse. 

       We do not maintain your credit card information at our office.  It is stored with a secure, HIPAA compliant PCI-DSS compliant server.
4. HOW DOES THE CCOF SYSTEM WORK TO DRIVE DOWN ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS
   1. Short AnswerLong Answer

       The CCOF process dramatically cuts down on the administrative costs associated with the billing process.   Ultimately, this eliminates the need for our office to generate, place stamps on, and mail multiple statements to each patient; this frees up our administrative staff to tend to patient needs.  Beside the benefits a patient receives from available administrative staff to meet their needs, CCOF eliminates the need to write out a check, place a stamp, and mail the statement back to us.  If you receive your statement and don’t want to make any changes, just hold onto the statement for your records and your card will be charged two weeks later.  Click here to read more.

       When we receive the EOB, we will enter this information into our system.  If your total amount owed is $25 or less, we will process the payment on your card on file.  If it is over $25, we will send out a statement showing your total responsibility—this is the only statement that will be sent.  If you would prefer to use another card, make a cash or check payment, or break the balance down into multiple payments, you have the opportunity to simply send a check or to call our billing office at (760) 573-4411 to make arrangements at that time.  Unless you have made other arrangements as just detailed, two weeks later we will run the statement amount on the card on file.  If your payment is declined, a $35 declined payment fee will be applied and we give you a courtesy call to let you know.  If we do not hear back from you within the week, a final warning message will be sent.  A week later your account will be sent to collections. Nothing is changing about how much you pay. We bill your insurance company for you, and we have contracts with most insurance companies that help to get you the best possible coverage for your care.
5. I ALWAYS PAY MY BILLS ON TIME. WHY DO I HAVE TO DO THIS?
   1. Short Answer

       CCOF nearly eliminates all the hassles associated with the billing process.  If you receive your statement and don’t want to make any changes, just hold onto the statement for your records and your card will be charged in two weeks.  Alternatively, you can choose to mail us a check or other form of payment within the two week period.
6. WHAT IF THERE IS A PROBLEM WITH MY BILL AND I DON’T NOTICE IT UNTIL AFTER PAYMENT PROCESSES?
   1. Short Answer

        Just call us.  We’ll help you investigate and fix it.