6 BEST Healthcare Credit Card Processing Companies in 2024

Finding the right credit card processor is challenging for any business, but if you’re in the healthcare sector, there’s even more to consider.

That’s because not every processor offers HIPAA-compliant software or can integrate with software medical offices commonly use. And even those that do may not offer pricing models well-suited to your business. Just because one type of merchant account works for a physiotherapy clinic doesn’t mean it’ll work for a pharmacy.

That’s not to say you’re out on your own. I’ve researched dozens of credit card processing companies, and I’ve found some fantastic options that come with HIPAA-compliant software, excellent rates, and even free hardware. Leaders Merchant Services (LMS) is my top choice for its low rates and free POS hardware that comes with HIPAA-compliant payment tools. Plus, it offers tons of built-in security features to keep your data safe.

Let’s take a look at the best healthcare payment processing for medical offices available today.

What We Look For in the Best Healthcare Credit Card Processing For Medical Offices

There’s no one-size-fits-all approach to healthcare payment processing, but there are features that every medical office needs from its credit card processor.

• HIPAA-compliant software. Software that’s used to access or store patient information needs to be HIPAA-compliant. Every payment processor on this list has its own software or can integrate with HIPAA-compliant software tools, making it easier to manage your administrative tasks.
• E-commerce integrations. Whether you take appointment bookings online or allow patients to order and pay for their medication on your website, you’ll need e-commerce integrations to handle those transactions.
• Chargeback and fraud protection. Chargebacks and so-called “friendly fraud” can present a significant threat to healthcare businesses, particularly when insurance companies don’t cover as many costs as the patient expects. Good healthcare merchant accounts come with built-in protection against fraudulent chargebacks and aid in disputing them if they arise.
• Invoicing and payment plans. Depending on your practice, you may have patients who need to spread out the full cost of their bill or need extra time to pay your invoice. A good payment processor should offer a variety of payment plans so that your patients can pay for their treatment in whatever way suits them best.

1. Leaders Merchant Services: Negotiate the Best Deal for HIPAA-Compliant Processing

Not only does Leaders Merchant Services (LMS) have some of the lowest per-transaction rates I’ve seen for interchange-plus pricing, but you can also get free POS hardware from Clover depending on your plan. These top-of-the line devices come with HIPAA-compliant software and other specialized tools for managing your healthcare business, including invoicing, staff scheduling, recurring billing, and CRM software.

Established practices will appreciate LMS’s promise to meet or beat their current processing rates. It’s so confident that it can at least meet your current rates it’ll give you a $200 AMEX gift card if it can’t. So if you’ve been with your current credit card processor for at least two months, get in touch with an LMS sales agent – there’s a good chance that this credit card processor can lower your costs.

It’s hard to go wrong with LMS because it offers so many ways to tailor your processing plan to suit your practice’s specific needs and budget. On a contract, you can get free Clover hardware, but if you opt for a month-to-month plan, you can purchase your equipment outright. New healthcare offices will benefit from industry-low rates while large practices with multiple locations can negotiate for lower pricing and multiple free terminals. This goes to show the lengths LMS is prepared to go to provide the best solution for your healthcare business.

Features and Benefits

• Merchant cash advances. LMS offers merchant cash advances to all its customers. If you’re unable to qualify for traditional financing, you’ll still be able to secure funding for your business through LMS.
• 96% approval rate. If you’ve struggled to find a credit card processor for your healthcare business in the past, give LMS a try. In some cases, you’ll know whether you’ve been approved on the same day, and you’ll be able to start taking payments in a few days.
• Add-on services. You can also negotiate additional services like loyalty programs and subscription payments, both of which can be extremely helpful for medical offices and specialized services.
• 24/7 phone support. This is ideal for healthcare practices that take after-hours emergencies. No matter what issue you’re having, you can count on LMS support for help.

Read more about negotiating your rates in our Leaders Merchant Services review.

2. Paysafe: Specialized HIPAA-Compliant Solutions for Health and Senior Care

Paysafe provides specialized HIPAA-compliant processing solutions for health and senior care businesses, from independent providers to multi-location practices and clinics. Its flexible plans, competitively priced fees, and industry-specific features can reduce your processing costs and support the growth of your healthcare business.

A wide range of accepted payment methods, from credit and debit cards to bank transfers and digital/virtual wallets, allows patients to pay however they prefer. Additional Paysafe features include a customizable checkout, recurring billing, and automatic payments, which help ensure your practice has a steady cash flow.

Paysafe’s Eldermark patient management integration provides additional tools to help you simplify your practice’s work. With this HIPAA-compliant software, you can quickly onboard new clients, securely store patient-protected health information (PHI), set up care plans, manage medications, and more.

Features and Benefits

• Securely store patient data. Paysafe’s API lets you build a Customer Vault to store patient profiles and payment information securely. Paysafe creates a unique token for each client that you’ll use to process future transactions, so you won’t have to enter sensitive billing data.
• Support for high-risk providers. If you primarily offer telehealth services, your practice may be considered high-risk, making it hard to secure affordable credit card processing. Paysafe is one of the few payment processors that works with higher-risk healthcare businesses.
• iAccess business portal. This HIPAA-compliant software suite allows you to view sales summaries, generate financial reports, and analyze your business’s performance against the competition.
• Chargeback protection. Paysafe’s Encytro Advantage Program will reimburse you for covered chargebacks up to $250 per chargeback. The monthly fee is $29.95.

See more Paysafe features in our expert review

3. Stax: All-in-One Payment Processor With HIPAA-Compliant Software

Offering both 0% markup on interchange fees and a full suite of HIPAA-compliant software for a single monthly fee, Stax is one of the best healthcare payment processors for US-based high-volume medical offices. If you already use various software tools to manage your healthcare business, Stax can save you a significant amount on software fees alone. Overall, healthcare businesses can save up to 40% on their payment processing with Stax.

Every Stax plan gets you access to Stax Pay, which comes with financial analytics and reporting, a virtual terminal, and even an online customer review management dashboard. The Pro plan unlocks Stax’s powerful invoicing software, which you can use to set up branded invoices with embedded payment links.

Most importantly, Stax’s built-in security ensures your patients’ PHI remains secure. Stax is a PCI Level 1 credit card processor, which is the highest level of PCI compliance available. This means it needs to complete third-party security audits every year, have its network scanned quarterly, and employ an internal compliance team. It also uses end-to-end encryption and tokenization to keep your data secure.

Features and Benefits

• Accept FSA/HSA. Stax merchant accounts can accept payments directly from a patient’s FSA or HSA account, making it even easier for your patients to pay you on time.
• Payment plans. You can set up payment plans on Stax’s Ultimate plan, which is ideal for healthcare practices that regularly charge for expensive procedures that clients may not be able to pay for in one go. You can also store payment methods for patients with recurring billing.
• Fraud protection. Stax uses address verification (AVS) to detect potentially fraudulent transactions. If AVS can’t completely verify a customer’s identity, Stax will put a hold on their account until you receive additional verification.
• 24/7 support. Stax offers 24/7 phone support and a comprehensive knowledge base. If you run a busy healthcare practice and can only contact support outside of business hours, it’s good to know someone’s always available at Stax to help you out.

Read more about this processor’s software suite in our expert Stax review.

4. Sekure Payment Experts: Tailored HIPAA- Compliant Processing Solutions

Instead of offering a few proprietary payment solutions, Sekure negotiates with a network of partners to source the best equipment, software, and processing for your practice’s specific needs. Although friendly, Sekure’s sales team isn’t too forthcoming, so carefully review your contract before signing.

If you’re considering Sekure, start with its online questionnaire for medical providers. You choose your healthcare practice area and needed features, and Sekure will recommend a specialty solution. That might include integration with software like Rectangle Health, which is the recommendation I got for a primary care practice. Although friendly, Sekure’s sales team isn’t too forthcoming, so carefully review your contract before signing.

If you decide to move forward, you’ll work with a Sekure healthcare expert who will offer a competitively-priced month-to-month plan. Your plan will include HIPAA-compliant free equipment and software with features to handle patient data, streamline billing, manage inventory, and enable online appointment booking. Sekure will even handle your PCI compliance for free.

Features and Benefits

• Patient payment plans. Rectangle Health’s financing solution lets you focus on delivering necessary care to your patients with no risk to your practice’s bottom line. Patients can choose from multiple fully funded plan options, making it easier to manage bills. The approval rate is nearly 100%.
• Zero-cost processing. If you’re trying to minimize your processing costs, you’ll appreciate Sekure’s zero-cost processing plan. You can minimize your processing costs by passing a 4% fee onto card-paying patients.
• Free same or next-day payouts. Whether a transaction is processed in person, online, or over the phone, Sekure will deposit funds to your bank account by the next business day.
• Third-party integrations. In addition to industry-specific software tools includedwith your Sekure healthcare payment solution, you can integrate popular practice management software you may already be using.

For more details, read our full Sekure review.

5. Payment Depot: Cost-Effective Processing for Healthcare Practices

If you want to minimize your payment processing costs, Payment Depot could be a great choice for your medical office. With Payment Depot, you’ll pay an affordable monthly fee in exchange for 0% markups and a low flat transaction fee of 0% + 10¢ (in-person). It’s one of the most budget-friendly credit card processors for healthcare, particularly given its exceptional security features. Unfortunately, it isn’t the most affordable solution for small practices processing less than $8,000 monthly.

Not only is Payment Depot Level 1 PCI compliant, but it also limits the amount of time you can store a patient’s information, which reduces potential fraud exposure. Payment information is also protected by end-to-end encryption and tokenization, which ensures sensitive data never leaves your local network or Payment Depot’s servers unprotected.

Recognizing that healthcare providers also have unique point-of-sale and software needs, Payment Depot plans include useful healthcare management integrations. These tools will allow you to process patients’ insurance claims quickly, offer flexible payment plans, and automate recurring billing, enhancing your practice’s efficiency and improving your clients’ experience.

Features and Benefits

• Great security record. Payment Depot has never suffered a data breach. This indicates that it works hard to keep its systems secure and up to date so you can be sure your patient payment data is safe.
• Authorize.net integration. The Authorize.net payment gateway is included with your PaymentDepot plan. In addition to its advanced security features, you can add industry-specific software with features for patient onboarding, EMR (Electronic Medical Records), e-prescriptions, and a HIPPA/PHPA-compliant patient portal.
• Easily dispute chargebacks. You can dispute chargebacks directly from your Payment Depot dashboard. This is convenient and saves you from searching for the billing and transaction information you need, allowing you to focus on patient care.
• 24/7 risk monitoring. Payment Depot’s risk monitoring team constantly monitors changes in fraud methods and bank policy, which allows Payment Depot to build security solutions before a problem arises.

Read more about payment security in our in-depth Payment Depot review.

6. Chase Payment Solutions: Fast Payouts and Impressive Features for Medical Providers

If you’re looking for a payment processor built for the healthcare industry, you may want to consider Chase Payment Solutions. It offers a number of industry-specific payment tools, including the proprietary HIPAA-compliant InstaMed software.

InstaMed’s suite of business management and patient engagement solutions help improve efficiency and allow you and your staff to focus on patient care. Like Chase Payment Solutions InstaMed meets the highest PCI standards and offers robust security measures like tokenization and end-to-end encryption to keep patient and payment data safe.

If you’re a small- to mid-sized practice, Chase’s simple, flat-rate pricing with no monthly or hidden fees makes it easier to predict costs and budget appropriately. Another perk is next-day and optional same-day payouts with a Chase Business account.

Besides your per-transaction fees, all you’ll have to pay is a low monthly fee for the InstaMed software.

Features and Benefits

• Seamless HIPAA software integration. InstaMed smoothly integrates with existing healthcare IT systems and electronic health record (EHR) software. With all patient payment data and financial information on a single, user-friendly platform, you and your staff can spend more time on patient care and less time on administrative tasks.
• Optimized patient portal. Patients can view their bills, make payments, set up payment plans, and store payment methods for future use. This can improve overall patient satisfaction and increase the chance of timely payments.
• Automated payment processing. InstaMed offers automated payment posting to your practice’s management system, reducing manual data entry and minimizing errors. With auto-reconciliation of accounts, you can streamline revenue cycles and improve your practice’s financial performance.
• Useful mobile app. With the Chase app you can accept payments, create and send payment links, and manage your account from your smartphone. It’s available for Android and iOS.

See our expert Chase Payment Solutions review for more.

Which Is the Best Healthcare Credit Card Processing Company for Your Clinic?

Finding payment processors that offer affordable rates, HIPAA-compliant software, and great customer service isn’t easy. While there’s no one-size-fits-all solution, these are my top recommendations that will suit most healthcare businesses.

Overall, my top pick is Leaders Merchant Services. With some of the lowest rates in the industry and a fantastic meet-or-beat guarantee, you’ll be able to negotiate the best possible rates for your healthcare business. Plus, every LMS merchant account comes with Clover’s built-in HIPAA-compliant business and payment management tools.

If your healthcare business is not strictly US-based, Paysafe is your best option. Based in the UK, it also serves the US, Canada, and parts of Latin America. While its HIPAA-compliant solutions will suit different types of healthcare businesses, Paysafe is ideal if you specialize in care for older people, which can be considered high-risk.

Finally, if you run a bustling healthcare practice, I recommend Stax. Not only does Stax offer advanced HIPAA-compliant software for a single monthly fee, but it also doesn’t charge a markup on interchange fees – which can save you a lot of money if you process a high volume of transactions every month.

FAQ

Which payment platforms offer HIPAA-compliant processing?

Both Leaders Merchant Services and PAYARC offer exceptional HIPAA-compliant payment processing solutions. You can still use a non-HIPAA-compliant payment processor to accept credit cards within your clinic as this is classed as an exempt activity. If you need to use payment software like e-commerce platforms, shopping carts, or scheduling software, then you’ll need to check that it offers a Business Associate Agreement (BAA) for healthcare businesses.

What payment platforms are HIPAA-compliant?

There are a lot of HIPAA-compliant payment platforms on the market. If you want the best rates for HIPAA-compliant processing, you should consider Leaders Merchant Services. High-volume healthcare businesses may want to look at Stax. Both of these processors offer secure payment gateways, CRMs, analytics software, and marketing integrations.

Why is PayPal not HIPAA-compliant?

PayPal isn’t HIPAA-compliant as it doesn’t offer a BAA (Business Associate Agreement) to healthcare providers. On top of that, PayPal collects user data and sells it to advertisers, so there’s no guarantee that it will protect public health information (PHI). If you need a HIPAA-compliant payment solution that offers great software, no contracts, free equipment, and competitive pricing for small businesses, consider Sekure Payment Experts.

What is the most common violation of HIPAA?

The most common HIPAA violation is the failure to secure and encrypt PHI. When it comes to payment processing, you can prevent this by using a processor that provides HIPAA-compliant software. You should also train staff that collect payments in data security. This means ensuring that there’s a designated secluded area to accept over-the-phone payments and immediately shredding documents containing PHI after use.