Effective July 12, postage costs are increasing again, raising the cost of a mailed patient statement via EPS from $1.107 to $1.147 for the first page. Additional pages remain $0.09 each.
While a four-cent increase may seem small, it can add up quickly for practices sending hundreds or thousands of patient statements each month. Combined with the costs of paper, printing and administrative handling, traditional mail continues to become a more expensive way to communicate with patients.
The good news? medent® offers several digital alternatives that can help reduce mailing expenses while improving the patient experience.
Through medent’s integration with Global Payments Integrated, practices can reduce reliance on mailed statements by sending billing notifications directly to patients via text or email.
Text to Pay messages cost $0.20 per transaction–a savings of $0.94+ per mailed paper statement. Patients simply click the secure link, view their balance and submit payment instantly.
No app to download. No portal login required. No waiting for the mail.
At current rates, a digital billing notification costs less than one-fifth the price of a mailed statement, while also accelerating payment timelines and reducing administrative handling.
The medent Patient Portal provides patients with 24/7 access to account balances and billing information.
When patients can securely view and manage their accounts online, practices can further reduce reliance on mailed statements while offering a more convenient, self-service experience.
The Patient Portal also reinforces digital communication habits, making it easier for patients to engage with their billing information outside of traditional paper statements.
Text to Pay and electronic billing tools deliver the greatest impact when patients are actively enrolled in digital communication options.
Practices that see the most success don’t wait for patients to update their preferences on their own. Instead, staff play an active role in guiding patients toward text or email delivery during everyday interactions, such as:
Regularly reviewing statement delivery preferences ensures patients remain enrolled in electronic options whenever possible. Many organizations also find success by positioning electronic delivery as the default option, while still allowing patients to opt into paper statements if preferred.
These simple, consistent conversations can significantly reduce the number of statements that need to be printed and mailed, directly lowering postage and operational costs.
Postage increases may be outside your control, but how you communicate with patients isn’t.
By combining Text to Pay, Patient Portal access and proactive patient enrollment in electronic communication, practices can reduce mailing costs, streamline collections and improve the overall billing experience.
If your practice is still relying heavily on paper statements, now may be the perfect time to explore a more digital approach.
