There is a wide range in the Women In Optometry Pop-up Poll responses in how tightly patients want to stay within the allowables of their vision benefits plans.
More than half of the respondents (56 percent) said that up half of their patients are willing to buy products that cost more than what their vision plan covers. Another 7 percent said that they didn’t know, and 37 percent said that the majority of their patients stay firmly within what the vision plan allows for frame/lens selections.
In total, 58 percent of the respondents said that their offices are more often than not successful in getting the patient to follow through with the treatment plan prescribed or recommended by the doctor.
Three-quarters of practices offer patient financing options for their patients. Among those who said that they do offer such a plan, CareCredit or specific health care financing was the most common solution, with 67 percent of practices accepting and promoting CareCredit as an option. Another 18 percent said that they accept CareCredit but do not promote it.
Of those who offer financing, 36 percent said that they offer their own payment or installment plan, with several respondents noting that patients are expected to pay half at the time of order and the remainder when picking up the order. Three percent offer in-house financing.
Sixty-three percent of the respondents said that costs are a very important or important factor in a patients’ decision to follow through with recommended products or services.
Forty-nine percent of the respondents to this Pop-up Poll reported they were female ODs and 34 percent said they were male ODs. The remainder were staff members, 12 percent women and 5 percent men.
