PayZen was named to TIME’s list of the World’s Top HealthTech Companies of 2026, recognized in the AI & Data Analytics category. TIME partnered with data firm Statista to identify companies around the globe using digital technologies to make healthcare more effective and accessible, evaluating metrics including financial performance, reputation, and online engagement.
More providers are requiring payment before a medical procedure. The share of U.S. healthcare providers building prepayment into the estimate process — whether by encouraging it, requiring it, or keeping a card on file — climbed to more than 9 in 10 in 2026, up from 81% in 2025, according to survey data from the Healthcare Financial Management Association and PayZen.
Have a costly medical procedure coming up? Odds are, you’re going to be asked to pay ahead of time. This year, about 92% of U.S. health providers either encourage prepayment, require it or collect a payment method on file during the estimate process, according to a survey conducted by PayZen, a patient payment service provider, and the Healthcare Financial Management Association. Last year, it was 81%.
Americans are being asked to pay for costly medical procedures up front. Roughly 92% of U.S. health providers this year are either encouraging prepayment, requiring it, or collecting a payment method to have on file during the estimate process, The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported.
Congress heard testimony that expanding direct contracting could cut costs, speed provider payments, and reduce clinician burnout, particularly benefiting rural hospitals, but the resulting drop in ED and urgent care visits would also cut hospital revenue, and related bills on facility fees and claims-data sharing drew pushback from hospital advocates over administrative burden.
