Selling Cash Physical Therapy

Selling Cash Physical Therapy

Trying to get patients to buy into the idea of cash practice? Struggling to convince someone that self-paying for physical therapy is actually better than using their insurance benefits?

It’s easy to fall into the trap of justifying your price, or explaining to a patient why out-of-network or cash practice is better than in-network physical therapy at a “traditional” corporate clinic. 

Take the focus off of price. 

Leading with the benefits of cash physical therapy puts the emphasis on price before anything else. We’re not trying to be the cheapest physical therapy clinic. We didn’t fight back against lower reimbursement from insurance companies just so we could undervalue our own services. We don’t need to convince someone that paying cash will save them money when compared to using their insurance benefits (this often isn’t actually the case). 

We’re looking to sell quality, improvements in pain levels, return to function/sport, a positive experience, and our specialty. Yes, we might be better able to provide these things in a cash-pay model. This doesn’t mean the model is important to the patient. They would likely rather use their insurance. 

The goal: although the patient would rather use their insurance, it’s important enough to them to see you that they don’t mind paying out of pocket. 

In cash practice, you’re looking to find the client that truly values and prioritizes (and can afford) specialty care, a positive healthcare experience, and the skills you bring to the table. If the potential client leads with a discussion on price, they’re probably not the right fit for your practice.

For many potential clients, price will be the number one priority in looking for a physical therapist. If that’s the case and you’re a cash practice, that patient is likely not going to be your ideal client. And that’s okay! There are plenty of clinics that will take that person’s insurance and provide the benefits they’re looking for. Rather than spend your time and energy trying to convince a patient whose priority is cost to choose your clinic, put your energy into your specialty and marketing to your ideal client.