Chris Kresser: Yes, actually we use our own business card. We charge the patient for lab tests after the appointment, whether it is the initial consult, a case review, or a follow-up. We then order the lab tests from the lab. There is usually a delay where you’ve collected the money from the patient, but you don’t get the bill from the lab for 30 or even 60 days depending on the lab’s billing policies. There are a couple of advantages to doing it that way. Number one is you don’t have to deal with all this, what you’re talking about, where the patient’s card is declined, and you have to get in the middle of all that. It sucks up a lot of time and energy. Regarding the 2 to 3 percent loss due to credit card processing, I guarantee you that the amount of time you spend or you pay your staff to spend resolving all these issues with credit cards will be more far more than that 2 to 3 percent.
The other thing is if you have a really good credit card with a great rewards program—we have Capital One Spark Business that’s a 2 percent cash back card, and you’re ordering 40—you eventually grow and have a very big clinic, and you’re ordering 30, 40, 50, or 60, upwards sometimes of $100,000 of labs in a month, you can generate some significant cash back and take yourself on a vacation every year just from those rewards. They can really add up and become substantial. I think it’s a better way to go for all of those reasons, so hopefully that helps.