Case Study: HELPING INDEPENDENT PHARMACIES LEVERAGE CURRENT PAYMENT TRENDS

Many consumers prefer community-based, independent pharmacies for their high-touch approach and personalized care. At the same time, however, there’s an increasing demand for added conveniences such as in-store or online shopping and curbside pickup or at-home delivery. Pharmacies also find that customers want access to the latest payment options such as text-to-pay, tap-to-pay, Apple Pay, and Google Pay. Keeping up with current payment trends may seem daunting — but Cardinal Health is making it easy with its new Modern Payments Processing solution.

MODERN PAYMENTS PROCESSING – POWERED BY SQUARE

The Modern Payments Processing solution is the result of a collaboration between Cardinal Health and Square. The two also worked closely with BestRx, the first pharmacy software system to integrate with Square, to ensure the solution was designed to meet the unique needs of independent pharmacies and their patients. Using Square’s hardware, software, and card processing, Modern Payments Processing handles all types of payments — from in-person at the point of sale to online and mobile. This eliminates the need for multiple solutions and helps streamline operations for 

an easier, more efficient experience. Plus, Square handles all payment fraud, risk, and disputes. They are also Payment Card Industry (PCI) certified, which means payments always comply with current regulations.

ENHANCED CUSTOMER SERVICE

With Cardinal Health’s Modern Payments Processing, pharmacies can funnel payments through a single processor for the range of flexible payment options consumers expect today. Cardinal Health also offers an e-commerce solution, Pharmacy Marketing Advantage Commerce, that leverages Square’s Web Payments SDK. This allows customers to place online orders through the local pharmacy, make payments, and choose from their pharmacy’s delivery or pickup options. By integrating a range of payment types through Square — pharmacies can reduce the time spent managing several processing platforms, freeing them up to focus on delivering the personalized care patients value so much.

TRANSPARENT PROCESSING COSTS

With this collaboration, Square offers Cardinal Health independent pharmacies a discounted and fixed processing rate. This includes card present and not present transactions for online or at-home delivery purchases. 

“I was very concerned about the rising cost of card processing — fees on top of fees,” says Imad Karaze, owner and pharmacist in charge for Beaumont Pharmacy. He also saw line items on his card processing invoices that made no sense. “I was looking for more predictable costs.” The Modern Payments Processing solution gives him just that, he says. “Now I know what each transaction will cost — every time, all the time.” 

Vijay, a pharmacist at Marble Hill Pharmacy and one of the very first to pilot the program, agrees. “The solution is very easy to use, and because Square provides flat rates, I don’t have to worry about additional processing fees as with other processors.”

INCREASED OPERATIONAL EFFICIENCY

Implementing the Modern Payments Processing solution enables pharmacies to take a full range of payments — text, online, point of sale, and mobile tablets. This eliminates the need to work with multiple processors, which may have inconsistent rates and reporting — making it difficult to get a handle on the actual bottom line.

Square’s open APIs also allow for direct integration with any pharmacy management system for an end-to-end payment solution. A range of built-in business tools and analytics also help streamline operational workflows for greater efficiency. For instance, an intuitive dashboard puts all payment data in one place — which can be accessed  via computer or mobile device for anytime, anywhere views of transaction history.  

This allows pharmacies to track sales and payment transactions whether customers are paying online, at the drive-thru, at the counter, or at home delivery. “The integration has made things even easier on my stores,” says Ankit Desai, who has several pharmacies using the Modern Payments Processing solution powered by Square. “It has enhanced the parts of Square I already enjoyed, including straightforward processing and flat fees, and eliminated a lot of the manual work I was doing when the terminal was not able to sync payment information to my software system."

Plus, since Square is PCI certified — pharmacies no longer need to individually validate their PCI compliance. Vishal Patel of Bourbonnais Pharmacy says this, combined 

with the transparency of the fee structure, provides value to his store. “Not only do I have greater visibility into my operational costs, I can ensure my pharmacy remains compliant without any additional work on my part.”