From Front Door to Last Mile: Aligning Patient Acquisition, Provider Availability, and Care Affordability

Health systems have invested heavily in digital access —online scheduling, intake, and self-service. Yet, access strategies often fail to convert demand into visits and payments. A new national study, The Cost of Confusion in Healthcare, makes the stakes clear: 38% of patients find it difficult to identify the right provider and location for their needs, and 50% of patients say they've cut back on care because of cost.

This session explores how Emory Healthcare is redesigning the patient journey to enhance ideal matching with provider availability, and how affordability best practices close the "last mile" of access: moving patients from acquisition to affordable action so matches become completed care, not lost visits. Speakers will share practical patterns, from diagnosing where matches break down to surfacing affordability at scheduling to reduce friction, improve conversion, and protect revenue.