PSC Info Group yesterday launched CALLERExpress, a complete suite of automated patient communication solutions.

CALLERExpress provides on-demand, integrated voice applications, including inbound and outbound patient communication solutions like pre-collection, denied claims, appointment confirmation, and account information applications.

“[CALLERExpress is] designed to help healthcare providers improve their business office operations without increasing their staffing costs and, at the same time, then allowing them to maximize the productivity of their staff,” says Mark Snow, chief marketing officer at PSC Info Group.  “The major benefits…are really designed to help healthcare providers.”

CALLERExpress—which is Health Information Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)-compliant and offers recorded messages in both English and Spanish— includes:

• Interactive Automated Pre-Collection Calls, which remind patients they have an overdue balance and collects credit/debit card or check information;
• Interactive Denied Claims Calls, which have the features of the pre-collection calls and alerts patients when a claim has not been paid by their health plan due to bad or missing data;
• Interactive Patient Appointment Confirmation Calls, which contact patients to remind them of an upcoming appointment that can then be confirmed, rescheduled or canceled; and
• Automated Account Information Interactive Voice Response (IVR), which allows patients to call in 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to hear account balances and last payments, and to make credit and debit card payments.

According to Snow, the new solutions will save healthcare providers time and money, while reducing “no-show” rates and improving past-due balance collections.

“It’s really designed to help the health care provider communicate, in a friendly way, about a past-due balance due from a patient and really reduce the incidences of the need for additional collection activity,” he says.  “It’s another way for a healthcare provider to communicate financial information to a patient that is specifically related to a past-due balance.” 

“This service is designed to reduce costs, increase patient revenues, and maximize staff productivity,” Snow adds, noting that the solution will also benefit patients by providing them with convenient, self-service options.

According to Snow, the reaction to CALLERExpress—which several clients were using prior to the launch—has been very positive, particularly in the area of pre-collection calls.

“We’ve received feedback directly from clients using the service telling us that they have seen an increase in patient collections and therefore they’ve reduced their patient bad-debt write-offs,” he says.  “Their staff productivity has gone up.”