>>>I don't think they're getting any float on the money. With credit card transaction fees around 3% and interest rates under 3% annually, I don't see how they could.
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>There's an issue with credit availability: small companies can fail if the lender pulls the plug, so businesses are desperate to reduce credit at almost any cost. Reducing AR is a good smart- maybe not as significant for small traders, but reducing AR by a few days is worth millions of $ for a healthcare provider.

Funny you should mention that. My contract that ended last month was for a health care provider and my last project was to get invoices to customers faster.