Patent ID: 8538875

Claim:
A non-transitory computer readable storage medium, comprising a processor having programming instructions embodied therein, said processor to be executed to implement a method for collecting payment from an individual for services rendered by a provider comprising: estimating an amount for which the individual is responsible for services rendered to determine an estimated amount; acquiring authority from the individual to place a hold on a specified amount from at least one financial account held by the individual, said specified amount being consistent with the estimated amount; placing a hold on the specified amount in the at least one financial account held by the individual while one or more third party payer entities determine an amount to be paid; transmitting one or more claims for adjudication to the one or more third party payer entities requesting compensation for the services rendered by the provider; automatically determining an amount to be deducted from the at least one financial account held by the individual based on an amount not paid by the one or more payer entities; automatically deducting the determined amount from the at least one financial account held by the individual; and automatically transferring the deducted amount to the provider.