Health Plans

RE: Health Plans

Anthony Dennison — Fri, 20 Dec 2019 10:49:29 GMT

[quote user="robloxley"]Generally the Ts&Cs for most plans say that if they cancel within the year (sometimes, unless the pet dies) they will be billed full cost for any services/drugs received minus any monies already paid. We have a small number who cancel soon after inception, you need to be on it, phone them up to explain what they will need to pay to settle their account, and many will reinstate their plan at that time; many practices will only give out a limited amount of drugs (flea/wormer) at a time to reduce risks from cancellers.[/quote]

That's what happens with ours (we're IVC so use their plan). Monthly reports come through to say if any have cancelled and our admin staff add it on and ring the client to inform them.

[quote user="robloxley"] think the plan needs to show true value - if it's not already good value without a couple of nailclips you can see where they might be coming from - but our staff also need to demonstrate value, particularly when services are provided 'free' under the plan.[/quote]

I'm very conscious of this so will always make sure they're booked in again. They get a full health check every 6 months included on the plan, but we'll book them in every 3 months to be weighed and collect their next doses with a nurse (or vet at a quieter branch practice), gives the clients a sense they are getting value out of it.

The IVC appointment guru thing calls walking clients out to reception 'the walk of gain'. Hate the cheesy, industry term but it makes a massive difference. Also very useful for those difficult clients that just wont leave the room - you open the door, walk them out and ask reception to book the next appointment before running away!

RE: Health Plans

Rob Loxley — Wed, 18 Dec 2019 13:53:44 GMT

[quote user="Minnie"]Have also had a few clients who have had vaccinations , flea and worm tx and have then asked about cancelling the d/d after one month[/quote]

Generally the Ts&Cs for most plans say that if they cancel within the year (sometimes, unless the pet dies) they will be billed full cost for any services/drugs received minus any monies already paid. We have a small number who cancel soon after inception, you need to be on it, phone them up to explain what they will need to pay to settle their account, and many will reinstate their plan at that time; many practices will only give out a limited amount of drugs (flea/wormer) at a time to reduce risks from cancellers.

[quote user="Minnie"]Yes they have been in but nails were so short they would have bled if clipped so they don't feel they have had value for money[/quote]

I think the plan needs to show true value - if it's not already good value without a couple of nailclips you can see where they might be coming from - but our staff also need to demonstrate value, particularly when services are provided 'free' under the plan. Likewise flea/worming if not collected by the client can cause similar gripes (and again most Ts&Cs say that unclaimed benefits are 'lost'), but most PMSs can easily email/SMS monthly reminders to clients to apply/collect more treatment, thus adding value.

[quote user="Minnie"]Maybe I got the wrong end of the stick when I thought clients coming into the practice to collect their treatment was a way of increasing footfall? How does that work when they get the stuff through the post box without visiting us?[/quote] I did wonder whether this was more about getting vets to be loyal to the drug company than clients to be bonded with their practice?

RE: Health Plans

Fiona French — Wed, 18 Dec 2019 09:04:37 GMT

We switched to Easy Direct debits about 18 months ago and have found them helpful and more cost effective than our previous company. They will do an online and telephone demo of their software and explain everything.

RE: Health Plans

Minnie — Tue, 17 Dec 2019 20:47:20 GMT

From a nurses point of view - mixed feelings. I work in an independent practice. Most of the time is ok once you have got across to the client that a health plan is not insurance and that isn't always easy. The company running the plan ? not that thrilled by them if I'm honest, quite pushy when they want us to do something and quite slow to react when we want them to do something. Not keen at all on the latest idea of posting out flea and worm tx directly from them to the client, but then again I suppose it makes my stock control a wee bit easier. Maybe I got the wrong end of the stick when I thought clients coming into the practice to collect their treatment was a way of increasing footfall? How does that work when they get the stuff through the post box without visiting us? and how do they know what they are sending out is still correct for that animal? Has it lost or gained weight for instance?

Have had a couple of whinging clients who have asked for refunds for services not provided - ie they are allowed 2 nail clips a year free on the plan if needed. Yes they have been in but nails were so short they would have bled if clipped so they don't feel they have had value for money. Have also had a few clients who have had vaccinations , flea and worm tx and have then asked about cancelling the d/d after one month (nobody has done this yet but obviously this will be a problem if they do and I'm not sure how we would go about billing them? I am guessing that once their d/d ends the company running the plan won't give a tinkers that the practice has just lost out)

RE: Health Plans

Bob Russell — Thu, 12 Dec 2019 17:41:44 GMT

My initial interest was very quickly replaced with laughter. MSD must be bonkers if they think it is a good idea.

Not sure we would have made much, if any profit selling their stuff and I doubt it will end with Bravecto.

Instead of coming up with these wheezes that corporates have no interest (in because it is a lose, lose for them) why not give some more real support for independent practices?

RE: Health Plans

chris Jones — Wed, 11 Dec 2019 09:34:27 GMT

the msd system is the one we looked at. got some very blank looks when I suggested it would cost us 3.5k per year to run it! either we would increase the cost which I think would reduce uptake or absorb the cost which makes it pointless.

RE: Health Plans

Allison Gleadhill — Tue, 10 Dec 2019 18:47:05 GMT

The MSD VetsDeliver system looked interesting when I was initially told about it but works out at a £2 a month charge ( postage & DD admin + vat) either to client or us which seems alot & worked out at 25% of the cost of flea/wormer dispense for a small dog package.

RE: Health Plans

chris Jones — Tue, 10 Dec 2019 16:26:08 GMT

we do our own tailored health package. this is easy to do with our in house PMS (animana - idexx). is does require a bit of setting up and monitoring what is paid by bacs to make sure people don't stop paying. we do standing orders rather than dd's so we do need to keep an eye on payments and inform clients of price changes.

it is a bit of work but we do a tailored package so that the client has the choice of whatever they want in the package. we generally work it out per year and apply a discount and book the whole years fee out on the animal account and the client then pays by bacs each month. the pms will then book out the correct number of wormers etc per year at zero cost. if they book out more than allowed it will charge them the normal price. we can vary monthly worming to 3 mthly and it will book the correct numbers. works pretty well so far. it is mainly for vaccs, worming and flea/trick control but some include medication or food.

we don't offer money off any other fees (consults dentals etc) so far, just the cost of the products / vaccs and a discount applied.

it took a bit of head scratching to work out the best way to do it but it seems to work well and is very popular despite us not promoting it! it is a fair amount of work to monitor and set up and we then don't pay another company.

we did look at one company who was offering to send meds out direct from the wholesaler but we felt that this would reduce footfall to the practice and also with the dd's and postage it would increase the cost per patient which either we would increase the fee which is not great or absorb the cost which is equally as bad!!!

we currently just continue to do it ourselves but it may get to a stage where the numbers are unmanageable and we may have to outsource.

chris

RE: Health Plans

Neil Wheadon — Tue, 10 Dec 2019 16:25:44 GMT

What do practices do with the unclaimed wormers and flea products?

In my experience there are a lot of clients who don't collect their products every 1-3 months. With a lot of clients on the plan, I have a feeling this really adds up in the practice favour.

Health Plans always looked like a win/win to me.

The most important thing from a locum point of view is make sure your computer system can allocate that fee/discounted consult and all the other benefit you have on the plan automatically without the locum/part timer having to trawl the system as does happen. Vets4pets group have sorted it, where you charge normally and Rx adjusts accordingly, as does IVC with Voyager.

Neil

RE: Health Plans

Laurence Webb — Tue, 10 Dec 2019 16:01:19 GMT

We used Animal Healthcare to collect our direct debits but had a high frequency of issues that they were not willing to resolve. We recently transferred the collection to Easy Direct Debits, who so far appear to be more efficient and cost less. We have had the same feedback from other practices as well.

The Pet Health Club makes up about 10% of our turnover and I find that it increases compliance regarding preventative treatments and makes clients more likely to come to us as their first point of information regarding their pet's health compared to a pet shop, pharmacy or dog groomer.

RE: Health Plans

Dinu Catilina — Mon, 09 Dec 2019 13:44:20 GMT

I am not sure how much value these plans bring to a practice but we do have numerous clients asking for one when they moved over from their previous vets. It got to the point where it's a must.

We looked at outsourcing it but I am paranoid. We give very sensitive data to a third party and we may be liable for its misuse.

RE: Health Plans

Virginia Campbell — Mon, 09 Dec 2019 13:26:02 GMT

[quote user="Julie Innes"] worry about some clients thinking it is a form of "insurance",[/quote]

Don't call it a pet health plan. It sounds too much like Petplan. You will still spend some time gently prising the wrong end of the stick out of people's hands if you call it something else, but it's less of a problem.

RE: Health Plans

Alistair Graham-Evans — Mon, 09 Dec 2019 13:19:53 GMT

A similar clinic to ours has recently introduced a health plan. I locum there occasionally so will see how they are getting on.

Maybe I will change my opinion - will see!

RE: Health Plans

Joyce Whitehead — Mon, 09 Dec 2019 12:55:36 GMT

Yes we do offer a discount, on routine neutering, dental procedures and food/counter sales, 10%off all. We use an outside provider, and tbh I would agree that monitoring all those direct debits would be a nightmare. There are usually a couple each month that either cancel, or have to be represented etc.

We have good take up, and clients often ask when they first come to the practice if we do a plan. Maybe as we are rural it is easier for the clients to get their products from us. And as said by Rob, I may mention the scheme in a consult if it is a vaccination appointment, but will only mention and say to speak to reception, which is where they will get much more information.

RE: Health Plans

Rob Loxley — Mon, 09 Dec 2019 11:40:18 GMT

[quote user="Alistair Graham-Evans"]discussing the needs of the patient[/quote]

On the flip side, spreading the cost of routine preventative care and keeping the pet covered with effective flea/worming is important to many clients, so the demand is there and there's a lot of the world (e.g. www.itchpet.com/) trying to get your clients signed up to monthly flea/worming products [and arguably fipronil isn't the best] if we don't offer such.

[quote user="Alistair Graham-Evans"]maximise their contact time with the vets[/quote]

Discussing the intricacies of health plans is maybe not the best use of vet time, but can be delegated to reception, nurses, website, leaflets etc.

RE: Health Plans

Alistair Graham-Evans — Mon, 09 Dec 2019 10:52:16 GMT

Health plans may work for some clinics. We get a fair number of new clients who are disillusioned by a veterinary visit that involves spending far more time talking about finance plans than discussing the needs of the patient. I decided years ago that more time and effort in trying to persuade more clients to buy anti- parasitic products and food from us is wasted. Our clients realise that we concentrate on health advice and treatment and we maximise their contact time with the vets. Food, parasiticides and pet products are offered but we do not comment on any desire to purchase elsewhere other than to point out if they are using products inappropriately. We are more concerned that health prevention products are used rather than the purchase source. We do recommend insurance, however many clients are concerned about premiums and we would rather leave the insurance companies to advertise than spend time as their salespersons. We assist with getting access to credit in times of need. Of course I could be a mistaken old has-been. I refuse to be compared to a Triassic era reptile as our medical and surgical services are very contemporary

RE: Health Plans

Rob Loxley — Mon, 09 Dec 2019 09:56:37 GMT

[quote user="Dinu Catilina"]We have this opportunity with our current PMS and I would prefer to keep everything in house[/quote]

I'd look at how much admin time monitoring hundreds of direct debits each month costs

RE: Health Plans

Dinu Catilina — Mon, 09 Dec 2019 09:25:04 GMT

Is anyone doing their health plan themselves without involving an external company? We have this opportunity with our current PMS and I would prefer to keep everything in house.

However, the more I read about them the more confused I get. How do you decide the pricing structure?

Has anyone used discounts for fees or surgical procedures on top of vaccines and wormers?

Thank you in advance.

RE: Health Plans

Joyce Whitehead — Thu, 12 Sep 2019 08:19:56 GMT

I’ll PM you K to see if we use the same provider!

RE: Health Plans

KMurphy — Thu, 12 Sep 2019 07:51:55 GMT

[quote user="Joyce Whitehead"]Until the service supplier only puts the price up on half the plans when you do a price update.[/quote]

Had a similar issue so have been following this with interest...

RE: Health Plans

Joyce Whitehead — Wed, 11 Sep 2019 18:28:23 GMT

I was sceptical too, but we started it about 5 years ago and have very good uptake. Maybe it helps we are rural so it is easy for folks to get meds from us rather than the supermarket or pet shop. Quite a few clients have asked if we have a scheme when they have registered. It runs itself after the initial set up. Until the service supplier only puts the price up on half the plans when you do a price update. Hence thinking of changing.

RE: Health Plans

Thomas Johnson — Wed, 11 Sep 2019 16:54:38 GMT

[quote user="Gillian Mostyn"]

I was always skeptical as bout them but was surprised after CVS arrived to see how popular they are.

I think lots of people are used to paying stuff by DD these days and find it far more convenient and affordable that way. And obviously it bonds people to the practice and prevents them just nipping to the supermarket for their OTC products. (You may be surprised how many of your good clients buy their flea and worming stuff elsewhere). If I had my own practice again, I'd have some kind of healthcare plan.

[/quote]

We were bought by IVC 5-6 months ago and launched their health plan 2 days ago, it has proved very popular, the receptionists are struggling to keep up with registering people for it. Most of them are people who were already buying products from us, but I signed up one client on the first day who was previously paying for vaccines with us and by monthly direct debit to Pets at Home for flea and worm treatment.

RE: Health Plans

Gillian Mostyn — Wed, 11 Sep 2019 13:27:01 GMT

I was always skeptical as bout them but was surprised after CVS arrived to see how popular they are.

RE: Health Plans

Julie Innes — Wed, 11 Sep 2019 09:27:52 GMT

Do people generally find health plans a good thing? I looked into them a few years ago and decided not to bother. I feel the clients who will come religiously for their vaccines/ flea control/ worming are going to come anyway, and the ones who don't won't be interested in paying for a health plan. Nearly all of my clients pay at the time of consult, which is a huge advantage we have as vets, especially as we pay our suppliers in arrears. Health plans in effect would mean splitting the cost of services provided over a year, so in some cases our payment will be in arrears.

I also worry about some clients thinking it is a form of "insurance", and I find the admin side enough to handle as it is, so I've always backed away from them, but they do seem to be popular among other practices. Maybe they work better in bigger practices with practice managers? Interested in your thoughts!

RE: Health Plans

Joyce Whitehead — Tue, 10 Sep 2019 20:44:19 GMT

Thank you, that is interesting, I hadn’t realised that was an option. Might be looking into that tomorrow!