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Skagit Regional Health

Policy/Procedure

Prompt Pay Discounts

Revenue Cycle &

Reimbursement

93872 Official (Rev: 1)

Purpose

The Prompt pay discount policy is intended for the uninsured patient population and supports the

organization’s commitment to provide healthcare services to all in need regardless of their ability to

pay. The prompt-pay discount shall be applied to eligible accounts to encourage patients to pay their

bills promptly.

Definitions

Financial Assistance Award: for purposes of this policy, the term “award” shall mean the reduction to a

patients’ account balance as a result of qualifying for financial relief per SRH’s

Financial Assistance Policy.

Prompt Payment Discount Percentage: A specified discount and partial write-off of amounts due from

an individual patient to health system in exchange for payments received per the terms of this policy.

Services: For purposes of this policy, the term “services” shall include all clinic, inpatient and

outpatient hospital services.

Uninsured: for purposes of this policy, the term “uninsured” shall mean those individuals without

commercial, or governmental health insurance (including Medicare/Medicaid). Patients who have

insurance but direct the organization not to bill same shall not be considered uninsured.

Policy

Skagit Regional Health shall assist uninsured patients and/or responsible parties with their financial

obligations whenever possible by providing financial counseling and assistance, screening patients for

available assistance programs, and applying available discounts. All revenue cycle staff members who

interact with patients will communicate the availability of prompt-pay discounts to the uninsured

population. The initial statement that is sent to an uninsured patient will notify them of this payment

option.

Procedure

1. Prompt-Pay Discounts

a. Skagit Regional Health will offer patients a twenty percent (20%) discount toward their

financial liabilities if the patient resolves the liabilities in full within 30 days of the first

billing date.

b. The Prompt-Pay Discount may be combined with any applicable Financial Assistance awards

and applies to all residual self-pay liabilities for patients without insurance coverage.

c. The Prompt-Pay Discount of twenty percent (20%) will be applied to the balance of an

account after any Financial Assistance awards have been recognized and not to original

charges. For example on an $1,000 account where the patient qualifies for 25% Financial

Assistance, the twenty percent (20%) Prompt Pay discount will be applied to the remaining

$750 balance resulting in a patient responsibility of $600 ($1,000 x (1-.25) = $750. $750 –

(1-.20 = $600).

d. If third-party coverage or other funding is identified, the discount will be reversed and the

appropriate third party will be billed. The patient will subsequently be billed for any

remaining balance. The Prompt Pay discount will not apply to balances after a third-party

insurance has paid.

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e. These discounts will not be applied to; court mandated payments, co-pay/deductibles, or

offered to any individual that resides outside of the United States and travel to the United

States for the purpose of receiving services.

f. This discount shall not apply to the following services:

i. Cosmetic treatment or surgery already offered at a bundled case rate,

ii. Reversal of previous sterilization procedures already offered at a bundled case rate,

iii. Care, testing or treatment of infertility, frigidity, or impotency,

iv. Experimental or investigational services,

v. More costly services when MAA determines that less costly, equally effective services

are available,

vi. Sports Physicals,

vii. Circumcision, and

viii. Retail Pharmaceuticals.

g. Approved discounts will be noted on the patient account and managed by appropriate staff

based on prompt-pay timeliness criteria. Prompt pay discount adjustments shall not be made

to an account unless eligibility criteria are met.

Eligibility Criteria

Prompt Pay discounts will be available for uninsured patients with no alternative funding source. In the

instance where a patient has no health insurance or other insurance coverage has been exhausted,

remaining balances shall be considered self-pay. This policy will not apply to patients with insurance

benefits that already discount billed charges to an ‘allowed amount’. The discount will be available for

each account/encounter where the patient meets their timely payment obligation.

Eligibility Determination

Prompt Pay discounts will be accepted when the patient has been determined to have no alternate

funding source and the patient pays within 30 days of invoice.

References

Reference Type Title Notes

Documents referenced by this document

Referenced Documents Skagit Regional Health Financial Ass

istance/Sliding Fee Scale

Skagit Regional Health Financial

Assistance/Sliding Fee Scale

Signed/Approved By

( 10/17/2019 ) SRH Policy Procedure Committee

Current Effective Date 10/17/2019 Next Review Date 10/16/2021

Original Effective Date 03/17/2016 Document Owner Freilinger, Linda

Paper copies of this document may not be current and should not be relied on for official purposes. The

current version is in Lucidoc at

https://www.lucidoc.com/cgi/doc-gw.pl?ref=svh_p:93872.

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