Surprise medical bills isn’t welcomed by people.
As per a report, two-thirds of the Americans are worried about being able to afford surprise or unexpected medical bills. Whether one can afford prescription drugs, a healthcare service, or premiums is at the back of every individuals’ mind. Unexpected medical charges cause anxiety and confusion that can result in forgoing medical care altogether.
From the perspective of public on healthcare charges and to avoid surprise medical bills, from January 2021, healthcare price transparency rules were introduced.
What is Healthcare Price Transparency?
The healthcare price transparency allows individuals to to know the cost of a healthcare service, product, or hospital before receiving it. Starting from January 2021, every hospital in the USA is required to offer accessible and clear pricing about services and items online.
Healthcare price transparency is about making patients or consumers feel more informed, prepared, and involved. Although some providers and payers are already offering price estimates for selected services and items prior to care, healthcare isn’t like any other commodity.
Healthcare is expensive and personal, and in involves decisions that can leave a life-long impact. Additionally, the inability of patients to compare and research healthcare expenses and quality acts like a barrier to attaining healthcare literacy and lowering costs.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has issues two rules – transparency in coverage and hospital price transparency. These rules help patients to make informed decisions about their overall healthcare.
Considerations Before Healthcare Price Transparency Platform Development
1. Market Research and Target Audience
A thorough market research gives a competitive edge and helps to analyze competitors strengths and weaknesses. Market research is an effective way to define goals of healthcare price transparency platform and limitations if any.
Deconstruct market research by identifying underlying demographics to understand who would and wouldn’t take an interest in this platform. Consider aspects such as age, gender, location, education, occupation, etc. for market research. Further, psychographics such as attitude, personalities, behavior, hobbies, and lifestyles aids to shortlist primary target audience.
Additionally, market research helps to determine gaps while developing a healthcare price transparency platform and to identify trends to check where to focus efforts. Knowing target audience is essential and so is understanding who isn’t, as this saves time and effort in building a platform for those who aren’t interested in it.
2. Compliance Rules
Compliances for healthcare price transparency platform include –
a. Display of clear and accessible price data for medical services.
b. Price list is in a machine-readable format.
c. Prices are readily available on website or apps, and doesn’t need any additional data or logins to view it.
Apart from this, consider developing a HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) complaint platform as it helps to prevent fraud causes and cyber attacks. Further, HIPAA compliance protects patients’ data and offers high-quality care to them.
Adhering to federally instated regulations, allows a healthcare facility to safeguard patients and enhance its credibility. Ensure to have a compliance plan in place, which includes policies and directives, along with a designated person to oversee compliance. Furthermore, training staff for compliance helps to strengthen policies and reduces risks for an organization.
3. Essential Features For Healthcare Price Transparency Platform
a. Cost Comparison Chart
This feature displays out price charts along with detailed descriptions, keeping it as transparent as it should be. A cost comparison chart gives all the details needed to make an informed decision, thus getting value and efficient care for money.
Further, its easier to show providers or healthcare organizations what the competition is offering, thereby leveraging the same service at a lower price.
Cost comparison charts are useful while conducting competitive analysis, and get an idea of new services that’re being offered. Patients can avert buyers remorse by comparing prices, thus making a cost-effective decision.
b. Dashboards
In case of hospital price transparency platform dashboards for patients/consumers, hospital administration, and healthcare providers can be created. This feature organizes price charts, calendar, and third-party integrations if any.
Interactive healthcare dashboards offer real-time data that allows patients to make informed decisions on availing care services; and help hospital staff to keep up with the pricing as per growing competition in the market.
c. Search Bar and Filters
Search bar and filters helps to find a product or service without encountering navigational obstructions. During development ensure to create a search function that’s efficient to connect the user with the result immediately. Thumb rule while developing a search box is that it should be the first or the second thing that a user sees.
Consider using magnifying glass icon, which is the universal symbol for search. Further, using identifiable context decreases cognitive load on users and by providing a search button triggers the next step for the users. During development, design the button size appropriately as it makes it simple to click and spot it.
d. Reviews and Feedback
Reviews and feedback helps to scrutinize overall user satisfaction and help to offer the best medical provider/care facility at best prices. It helps to improve user service by efficiently resolving problems that consumers face, and create a positive experience.
Feedback allows to build credibility and social proof online, as this helps users while selecting medical services.
4. MVP Development
Minimum Viable Product (MVP) is about testing what works and what doesn’t. Its about understanding market demand and then test the product accordingly. MVP helps to prove merits of healthcare price transparency platform.
Developers can verify product concepts with core set of features, rather than full-blown features. MVP helps to test products’ potential for software longevity, engagement, and lifetime value. Further, the minimum approach prevents the software from becoming complex.
5. Testing and Launch
Prior to launch, test everything that you can, to ensure that every basic functionality is in place for public use. Additionally, testing rids of potential bugs and threats, thus saving time and money for rectifying faulty codes. Once thorough testing is wrapped up, its time to launch.
If you’re looking for a healthcare software development company to help you create a healthcare software that matches with industry standards, then reach out to Arkenea – a leading healthcare and technology company. With 12 years of experience in the healthcare software industry, Arkenea is the trusted development partner for up and coming healthcare startups as well as established healthcare companies.