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Path to Purchase Research: A Survey Analysis by Bete Johnson

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Cost remains a top barrier to care and may cause patients to delay or decline treatment.* It may not be the total cost of treatment that concerns patients, but rather the challenge of fitting payments into their lifestyle.

CareCredit recently completed the Consumers' Path to Healthcare Purchases Study on the dental patients' buying process. The study revealed that during their decision-making process, many patients conduct extensive and simultaneous research into both the recommended dental treatment and the cost of care, including payment and financing options.

Key insights specific to the dental profession include:

Consumers' path to purchase takes anywhere from one to five months and differs by treatment and procedure type. On average, patients take 76 days to go through several key areas of consideration. The length and complexity of the process is influenced by cost, time, need vs. want, and insurance benefits. In dentistry, the average number of days to decision is 69.8.

Sixty-seven percent of dental respondents considered or researched cost and financing, and 58 percent researched the treatment.

More than half of dental respondents (56 percent) chose a provider with whom they already had a relationship and an additional 34 percent selected their provider on the first practice visit.

Patients rely on their provider for information on both treatment and cost, as well as payment options.

The majority (71 percent) of dental respondents surveyed sought information offline—in the provider's office, with 28 percent specifically asking about financing.

Of dental respondents, 52 percent were not aware financing was available for their needs, yet 47 percent of non-cardholder dental respondents would consider financing if it enabled them to get care immediately.

As the cost of care increased, the percentage of dental respondents/patients who were very likely to use or apply for a health-care credit card increased, with 49 percent of patients very likely to use or apply for a health-care credit card for treatment fees of $1,000. The average reported spending for dental treatment was $1,177.20.

Of the dental respondents included in the study who were cardholders, 29 percent would have gone to another provider who accepted health-care credit cards and/or 39 percent would not have had the procedure, had financing with a health-care credit card not been available.

Source: Path To Purchase Research - Dental Category, conducted by Rothstein Tauber, Inc. on behalf of CareCredit, 2014. *ADA Health Policy Institute Analysis of Harris Poll Survey Data collected April 2014

Bete Johnson is the vice president, strategic partners and alliances for CareCredit. She has been a core part of the CareCredit team for more than 14 years. Through her engagement with dental professionals, including consultants, associations, practices and dental suppliers, Johnson provides the opportunity to network and create new relationships that benefit the dental profession.


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