Medical professionals do what they do because they want to help people. But a disorganized back office can get in the way. And it isn’t an uncommon problem.
The costs of running a medical or dental practice can be staggering—and just like with any business, owners can run into cash-flow issues, which can be further complicated by the time it can take to pay off those bills and keep track of expenses.
Rather than spending hours each day rummaging through receipts, medical professionals can save time by turning to a Corporate Card to pay for back office expenses.
Here are four ways a Corporate Card can help cover back office bills—and make practices run a little more smoothly.
1. Cover costly expenses that come month after month.
Dr. Stephen Hudis is a prosthodontist based in Princeton, New Jersey, and has been practicing for approximately 40 years. With six employees, payroll is considerable, as is equipment. “In today's world, a small piece of equipment is $50,000," he says. But Hudis explains that it's the monthly laboratory costs—often six figures—that could destroy his practice's cash flow.
For practices grappling with similarly high monthly expenses, a Corporate Card could be the solution. Merchant Financing1 from American Express - term loans for eligible card-accepting merchants. These are fixed fee, no-interest loans that can be paid back automatically or over a period of 6, 12 or 24 months. Merchant Financing loans range from $5,000 up to $2 million—which can help cover anything from bulk orders of everyday supplies to a new digital X-ray system. Many of these programs also offer the opportunity to earn an early repayment rebate of up to 25 percent of the borrowed amount, depending on the term of the loan and when it’s repaid.
If you pay your bills every month, it doesn't cost you anything. It's a dream shop.
—Dr. Thomas Leach, New Jersey-based cosmetic and reconstructive plastic surgeon
2. Reinvest cash back into the practice.
Dr. William Villano is a dentist and has a general dental practice in Highland, NY. And, yes, his back-office expenses are considerable, too.
“The major expenses are the employee salaries," Villano says. “Then supplies, from cotton rolls to impression materials. You know, all that stuff you see when you walk into the office."
The lab bills for Villano's general practice range between $2,000 and $4,000 a month. Additionally, Villano has rent, pension plans and health care to pay, all of which can be extremely punishing to a back office’s cash flow. While money is constantly coming in from co-pays and insurers, it’s constantly going out the door, as well.
Issues like those faced by Villano could be helped by the Corporate Membership Rewards® program2 from American Express, which allows Card Members to consolidate points from multiple enrolled American Express Corporate Cards and put them toward business expenses. Getting cash back in the form of a statement credit from one’s necessary expenses can offset the financial sting when, say, an employee asks for a raise or the price of cotton balls and patient bibs goes up.
3. Simplify multiple offices with one Corporate Card.
One ophthalmologist in New York, who asked to remain anonymous, works in a group practice with multiple office locations, resulting in complicated and costly back-office expenses.
Imagine doing an upgrade and having to buy digital-refraction systems, an important piece of ophthalmology equipment that can easily cost $30,000, for several offices. Not to mention all of the inventory of frames and contact lenses that one must constantly keep stocked for patients. Now imagine each office paying for all of that separately, with cash, checks and credit cards
Rather than having offices divide and conquer, centralizing expenses and consolidating payments to one Corporate Card can help professionals maintain a holistic understanding of their finances. The American Express @Work®3 platform lets office managers make sense of management information data by making all of their information accessible online, 24/7. The platform also includes customizable reporting tools that analyze data and help professionals make smart decisions, including identifying savings opportunities.
4. Streamline expenses by paying with one Corporate Card account.
As with any business, no matter how much one plans their monthly cash-flow and financial picture, something unexpected is likely to come up. Maybe a piece of expensive equipment suddenly breaks, or cash flow is upended due to claims being denied by an insurer.
The New York-based ophthalmologist explains how his practice often uses its company credit card for expenses that aren’t always fixed costs. “Let's say, buying lunch for the technicians—we'll throw it on there," he says. "Supplies, for sure. Even smaller instruments…like, one-time purchases. Let's say, $12,000 or $20,000 for some diagnostic machine or $2,500 for a specific pressure measuring tool."
For professionals like this one, covering all back-office expenses with one Corporate Card, and, in turn, paying only one bill, can make life less complicated for the staff and, with the time saved, a little more relaxed.
Dr. Thomas Leach, a cosmetic and reconstructive plastic surgeon in Princeton, New Jersey, agrees. He says that he doesn't pay for his entire plastic-surgery practice by Corporate Card, using instead other financial tools, such as lines of credit, but he likes the idea of running a medical practice on a Corporate Card—and points out that the monthly statements can be excellent for record keeping.
According to Leach, “There's a major advantage to doing that. If you pay your bills every month, it doesn't cost you anything. It's a dream shop."
Terms and Conditions
1. American Express® Merchant Financing loans are commercial loans. The loans are secured by business assets, excluding real property and motor vehicles. Merchant Financing is not a purchase/discounting of receivables or a cash advance. To be eligible for a Merchant Financing loan, your business must accept the American Express Card and satisfy other eligibility requirements. A business can have only one Merchant Financing loan at a time. Not all industries are eligible for a Merchant Financing loan. For loans of $35,000 or less, a personal guaranty may be required. After you submit an application for a loan, and if approved, we will tell you how much your business can borrow, the fee for the loan and the repayment method, which will each be determined based on the creditworthiness of you and/or your business and other factors. If approved for a loan, funds will be disbursed to the business bank account in which your business receives settlements for credit and debit card transactions. Repayment options may include automatic debits via ACH every business day in a fixed amount from your business bank account or a daily withholding of a percentage of your business’ credit and debit card receivables. To remain in good standing, your business must continue accepting the American Express Card during the term of the loan, meet minimum repayment obligations, and satisfy other criteria contained in your loan agreement. Late fees and fees for insufficient funds may be assessed. Early repayment rebates of either 25% or 10% of the fee for the loan are contingent on there being no default and the date of the early repayment, which varies by repayment term. A fixed fee, which is a percentage of your loan amount, will apply. Fixed fees vary by customer and are based on the creditworthiness of you and/or your business and other factors including your processing arrangements, referral source, and term. Fixed fees range from 1.75-8% (6-Month Term), 3.5-12% (12-Month Term), and 7-20% (24-Month Term).
Early repayment rebates of 25% or 10% of the loan fee are contingent on there being no default and the date of the early repayment, which varies by repayment term.
2. Enrollment in the Corporate Membership Rewards program is required. Only the American Express® Corporate Green Card, American Express® Corporate Gold Card, and Corporate Platinum Card® from American Express are eligible to enroll in the Corporate Membership Rewards program. The Program Administrator is charged a $90 annual enrollment fee for each enrolled Corporate Green and Gold Card Member. A program fee is not applied for the Corporate Platinum Card®. Get one Corporate Membership Rewards point for every dollar of eligible purchases charged on enrolled American Express® Corporate Cards. Eligible purchases are purchases for goods and services minus returns and other credits. Eligible purchases do NOT include fees or interest charges, balance transfers, cash advances, purchases of travelers checks, purchases or reloading of prepaid cards, or purchases of other cash equivalents. If the Corporate Card Member is transferring from an existing Membership Rewards program to the Corporate Membership Rewards program, the Card Member will have 30 days to use any existing Membership Rewards points before they are forfeited.
The redemption value of Corporate Membership Rewards points varies according to how you choose to use them.
For the full terms and conditions for the Corporate Membership Rewards® program please visit americanexpress.com/corporatemrterms for more information. Participating Corporate Membership Rewards partners, available rewards, and point levels are subject to change without notice.
3. Use of American Express @Work® is restricted to employees, contractors and/or agents that the Company, and its representatives designate for the sole purpose of performing online account queries and maintenance, including accessing and/or creating reports relating to the Company's American Express® Corporate Card programs. @Work is available to all companies with an American Express Corporate Card program.
Enrollment is required. To enroll in @Work please contact your American Express Representative or call 1-888-800-8564.
Photo: Getty Images
