September 28, 2026
How Can Claims Payment Transparency Help Payers Reduce Denials and Provider Friction?
By Ted Ferrin, SVP, Payments Innovation, Zelis®
This is Part 2 of our payer value series. Read Part 1 →
Key Takeaways
- Give providers greater clarity into claims, so they can fix issues before they repeat, saving time and money.
- Turn scattered claims data into actionable patterns providers can use to improve performance.
- Help providers submit cleaner claims to reduce repeat denials, appeals and rework.
For many providers, the real work starts after the payment lands.
Where’s my payment? Why was I paid $X instead of $Y? Why was this claim denied?
That back-and-forth creates friction for providers and payers alike. And the stakes are real: nearly one in four providers write off denied claims instead of appealing them because the cost of recovery exceeds the value of the claim.¹
Claims payment transparency can change that.
By giving providers clearer insight into what a claim needs before payment, they can better understand denials, spot recurring issues and submit cleaner claims the next time around.
The result: fewer surprises, less rework and a more predictable reimbursement experience. Watch the video to see what greater claims transparency could look like — where what a provider submits is what gets paid.
Watch the video to see how a better provider payment experience can reduce friction and create value for both sides.
Ted Ferrin: Transparency That Improves Claims
Frequently Asked Questions
Payment friction is the manual work and back-and-forth required to get a claim paid and reconciled. For providers, that often means logging into multiple portals, matching remittance formats and calling payers for payment status updates or answers. The friction comes not only from the speed of payment, but also from all the effort surrounding it.
Not entirely. Digital payments can make payments faster, but much of the manual work remains. Among providers, 93% say digital payments are faster, but only 4% say they reduce manual effort.¹ Payers report a similar gap: 88% say digital payments improved speed, but only 12% say they significantly reduced manual effort.
When providers have to work through slow, fragmented or unclear payment processes, they need more help resolving issues. That can drive more calls, disputes and appeals for payer teams. The friction may begin on the provider side, but the resulting administrative burden affects both payers and providers.
ZAPP Edge℠, the provider-facing experience layer of Zelis Advanced Payments Platform℠ (ZAPP), brings electronic payments, remittance data and financial insights into one provider experience. It connects providers to 485 payers, and 92% of the top 100 hospitals and health systems are enrolled.²
Zelis brings electronic payments, data and financial insights together across 485 payers, helping reduce fragmentation and the administrative burden that comes with it. Our provider roadmap is shaped directly by provider feedback and market research, with a focus on addressing the manual effort digital payments alone have not eliminated.
1. Zelis Provider Abrasion Study: Payment Integrity & Claims Processing Challenges (Commercial Payer Focus). Telephonic interviews with n=200 U.S. healthcare providers. February 11–16, 2026.
2. Zelis internal data. ZAPP Edge℠ payer connections and top-100 hospital and health system enrollment.
About Zelis
Zelis is modernizing the healthcare financial experience across payers, providers, and healthcare consumers. We serve more than 725 payers, including the top 5 national health plans, regional health plans, TPAs and millions of healthcare providers and consumers across our platform of solutions. Zelis sees across the system to identify, optimize, and solve problems holistically with technology built by healthcare experts – driving real, measurable results for clients. Learn more at Zelis.com and follow us on LinkedIn to get the latest news.