The short answer
Who it fits and who should hold off
Practices that fit best have steady deposits from insurers and patients, a few months or more in business, and a specific use for the money.
- Strong fit: primary care, dental, chiropractic, physical therapy, dermatology, veterinary, med spa, and specialty groups with consistent collections.
- Workable with care: a newer practice with under six months of deposits. Advances are the most flexible here, with MFE's guideline commonly from 3+ months.
- Hold off: a practice whose collections are falling because of a billing backlog it has not fixed. Funding a broken claims process just delays the problem.
Three common uses, three different tools
Reimbursement gaps. A new payer contract or a coding change can push collections out 30 to 60 days. A working capital loan or advance covers payroll and rent until claims catch up.
Equipment. Imaging units, dental chairs, lasers and sterilization gear fit equipment financing. Terms are matched to the equipment's life and never run past 60 months at MFE. You need a vendor quote, and a down payment may be asked.
Expansion. A second operatory or location usually blends a lump sum for buildout with equipment financing for the gear. See the Merchant Fund Express medical industry page for how these are reviewed.
Check what your business qualifies for
Merchant Fund Express reviews medical practice funding requests from $5,000 to $5,000,000. Scores from 500 are considered, and same-day decisions are common on complete files.
Check funding options with Merchant Fund ExpressKeep patient information out of the file
A funding review needs business documents only. Send bank statements, ID, a voided check and the application. Do not send charts, claim detail with patient names, appointment books or anything else that identifies a patient. If a statement line shows a patient name on a deposit, ask your bank for a business statement format or redact it before sending. A funder never needs protected health information to size an offer.
Illustrative example: a dental chair and X-ray unit
Assumptions: a two-dentist office adds a third operatory. The vendor quote for a chair, delivery unit and digital X-ray is $72,000. The practice puts 10% down, finances the rest over 60 months, and the assumed monthly payment is $1,520.
| Line item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Equipment cost | $72,000 |
| Down payment (10%) | $7,200 |
| Amount financed, paid to vendor | $64,800 |
| Monthly payment | $1,520 |
| Total of payments (1,520 x 60) | $91,200 |
| Financing cost (91,200 - 64,800) | $26,400 |
These figures are illustrations, not offers. Real pricing, terms and amounts depend on the full file Merchant Fund Express reviews.
If the new chair books 12 visits a week at an average collected fee of $140, that is about $7,280 a month in new collections, well above the $1,520 payment. If it books four visits a week, the math is much tighter.
Funding brings customers. Is your website ready for them?
A new operatory or location only pays off if new patients can find it, so the practice site needs current providers, accepted insurance, hours and an online request form before the doors open. Cheap Cheap Websites builds professional practice sites from $399, with Website Care at $30/month for hosting, HTTPS, backups and small edits.
Documents to prepare
- Three to four months of business bank statements.
- Owner ID and a voided business check.
- A short application.
- The vendor quote for any equipment.
- For larger requests: year-end financials, tax returns, and a collections summary by payer (totals only, no patient detail).
When another path is better
- If a single payer is late because of a credentialing error, fix the credentialing first. Borrowing to wait on a fixable problem costs more than it should.
- If you want flexible access for repeated gaps and have 1+ year in business with credit around 650, compare a business line of credit.
- If equipment is the only need, compare equipment financing with working capital before taking a lump sum you do not need.
Related funding guides
Cheap Cheap Websites builds websites. It does not lend or make funding decisions. Funding is offered by our funding partner, Merchant Fund Express, and every request is subject to its review and approval. Figures on this page are illustrations, not offers. Updated October 15, 2026.