Cedar's AI voice agent handles 400K patient billing calls

A voice AI agent designed to handle patient billing inquiries has processed nearly 400,000 calls across multiple healthcare providers in its first 14 months of operation, according to Cedar, the patient financial platform behind the technology.

The company announced Monday that its AI voice agent, named Kora, has been deployed by more than a dozen healthcare organizations since launching in April 2025. The system operates around the clock to autonomously resolve common billing questions on first contact, trained on Cedar's proprietary healthcare billing data.

Kora handles patient authentication, balance inquiries, bill explanations, collections matters, and outbound payment campaigns. Organizations using the platform include Hartford HealthCare, Keck Medicine of USC, ApolloMD, Emerus, and Gastro Health.

Measurable operational impact

At Gastro Health, one of the largest gastroenterology practices in the United States, the AI agent has fielded more than 60,000 calls since its September deployment. The practice reported a 24% reduction in live agent handle time and a 22% decrease in call center staffing requirements.

More than 80% of Gastro Health patients who used the system indicated high satisfaction in post-call surveys, according to Cedar.

"The numbers speak for themselves as handle time is down 24%, staffing needs are down 22%, and patient satisfaction is above what live agent teams were hitting," Gastro Health CFO Lawrence Freni said in a statement provided to Fierce Healthcare. "The part that doesn't show up in a metric is the pressure it's taken off our people. They're spending less time on repetitive calls and more time on the interactions that actually need a human."

At ApolloMD, Cedar reported the platform contributed to a 42% increase in patient payments alongside measurable reductions in live agent workload.

Why it matters

Healthcare billing remains a persistent friction point in the patient experience, with delayed statements, unexpected charges, and limited support channels eroding trust. Voice AI systems that can resolve complex billing inquiries—including explanation of benefits discrepancies and collections questions—without human intervention represent a potential path to both improved patient satisfaction and reduced operational costs. The early results suggest autonomous voice agents may handle a substantial share of routine billing interactions while freeing staff for cases requiring human judgment.

Expansion beyond initial targets

Cedar initially aimed to automate 30% of inbound billing calls. The company now plans to expand into outbound patient engagement and what it describes as agentic workflow automation.

"Patient trust vanishes" when bills arrive late, don't match expectations, or leave questions unanswered, Cedar CEO and co-founder Florian Otto told Fierce Healthcare. "That's the problem Kora was built for—not to deflect calls, but to handle the ones that genuinely require explanation and resolution."

Otto noted that patients are resolving complex billing questions, including explanation of benefits discrepancies and collections inquiries, without reaching a live agent, with satisfaction scores exceeding live agent benchmarks.

The details were first reported by Fierce Healthcare.