It’s not that common to find a surgeon who can say they have a whole platform dedicated to giving patients around the country a better understanding of what they’re in for in terms of costs and fees. Then again, it’s not that common to find a surgeon like Pacific Heights Plastic Surgery’s Dr. Jonathan Kaplan.
Also known as the Real Doctor Bae in online circles, he is a person of many interests, and he uses many of them to help both his patients and fellow doctors. His long-standing effort and advocacy for price transparency came to the forefront when it was announced that, starting on January 1st, 2021, medical institutions will have to make strides to improve their price transparency.
Of course, Dr. Kaplan was way ahead of the curve with his BuildMyBod Health platform. The platform, which was in use for a whole decade before the new pricing transparency rules came into effect, has been guiding Dr. Kaplan’s potential patients for quite some time now. In its current iteration, the system relies on the input of a patient’s information via a chatbot, which then sends the relevant pricing information to the consumer via email.
The primary role of BuildMyBod Health is to tell potential patients how big of a cost they’ll be in for, should they decide to go ahead with the procedure. This is the key part of the information that many doctors don’t like to show upfront, opting to wait until sometime after the consultation and spring the quote on them.
Thanks to the ability to learn the price in advance, patients can have a significantly easier time determining whether to undertake the procedure or not. Shopping around for the best value between price and quality also becomes an option, thanks to Dr. Jonathan Kaplan’s BuildMyBod Health.
It’s sometimes easy to forget that Dr. Kaplan, besides being an advocate for pricing transparency, is also a tireless communicator who covers various topics on his websites. Spread across different categories, there’s plenty there; for example, it warns people about safety issues if they don’t seek out a board-certified plastic surgeon.
It’s also easy to forget that Dr. Kaplan is pushing price transparency against the best wishes of the medical community. Healthcare as a whole has always been leery of posting pricing online. This is due to fears of patients focusing on price rather than the doctor-patient relationship, the complexity and potential confusion with various insurance negotiated rates, and the possibility of losing competitive advantage by posting prices online.
In an effort to assuage these concerns, “Dr. Bae” recommends combining pricing with lead generation so both sides win. The patient, who stands to gain the most by finally knowing cost ahead of time, can determine their financial responsibility and make better choices. The hospital can use price transparency to their advantage and capture a patient’s information, thus establishing a relationship and help them navigate the complexities of the medical system.
