Zepherella has started piloting an
iPhone compatible application to supplement the company’s Web site. Both the Web site and the application from Zepherella apparently give physicians and their patients an efficient and stress-free way to complete payment transactions online.
Company officials said that Zepherella builds on the belief that healthcare pricing should be upfront and available to patients. It provides physicians a so-called “quick and convenient” way to inform their patients about the cost of their medical care from inside the examination room itself.
According to Tom Furr, CEO of Zepherella, the company created the enhancement so that both doctor and patient will have real time access to prices and discounts for specific services. The enhancement will also eliminate the guessing game for doctors and their patients when the need for lab tests or other services emerge during an office visit.
Typically, “self-pay” patients have to wait for a bill to arrive to know the cost of their medical care. Zepherella has made healthcare pricing straightforward and within reach for patients through its free and easy-to-use online service. The new iPhone application will make No Surprise Healthcare Pricing portable as well.
According to Dr. Remy Coeytaux, MD, PhD., Chapel Hill Integrative Medicine Associates' Medical Director, even though he often discusses potential diagnostic tests with patients during medical examinations, neither of them know the cost involved. Zepherella's iPhone application will enable patients and physicians to work together to make decisions with all the medical and financial aspects covered. In addition, staying in the exam room will help to keep the focus on patient care.
Zepherella offers a so-called “no-risk, no-cost” healthcare management system for physicians. There is no minimum monthly payment requirement for the physician. Zepherella will pre-authorize a patient’s credit card, debit card or PayPal account for the known costs of the visit ahead of time. The charge will then be processed at the time of check out.
Zepherella is conducting a pilot release of its service in North Carolina prior to the anticipated regional rollout. In addition, Zepherella is working on a solution for insured patients, particularly those with high deductible health care plans, to shop for competitively priced, high quality medical care.
Don’t forget to check out HealthTechZone’s White Paper Library, which provides a selection of in-depth information on relevant topics affecting the IP Communications industry. The library offers white papers, case studies and other documents which are free to registered users.
Follow ITEXPO on Twitter: twitter.com/itexpo
Calvin Azuri is a contributing editor for HealthTechZone. To read more of Calvin’s articles, please visit his columnist page.
Edited by
Erin Harrison
