Tag Archives: virtual credit card payments

Dental practices should avoid virtual credit card payments. Virtual Credit Cards (VCC/VCP) are another form of payment being offered to the Dental Practices by Insurance plans. Some Dental Plans have even gone as far as making it the preferred method of payment. Other Plans are using outside vendors to process payments for your practice. The payment process can be changed to VCC for practices that are not contracted with the Plans.

Here are three reasons to avoid using Virtual Credit Card payments:

1. The dental practice increases its operating costs by paying the Merchant Service fees to process payment. This cost can range from 2% to 5% depending on your Merchant Service costs.

2. Payments received as Virtual Credit Cards are not easily posted to most practice software systems.

3. Virtual Credit Card payments do not have adequate documentation for claims resolution. Determination of related patient data is not easily detailed on the VCC payment documentation.

At this point of the market rollout, a VCC payment can be easily converted to a paper check by contacting the Vendor. We do not recommend processing any payments through VCC if you want paper checks. Checks are typically promised in seven to ten days. A follow-up letter to the Dental Plan is recommended to complete the process.

We do not recommend the use of Virtual Credit Cards. The practice can always decline participation. Call us if we can help.