Dental Insurance.. It is a ''Necessary Evil", or is it?? What are the Dental Insurance Trends occuring in the dental industry now? Does your dental team know what these trends are? The ADA published an article in 2013 that has shown, there is a "New Normal" to dental spending. The per capita per patient has gone down since 2013. The "Good Old Days of Dentistry" are gone! So, how do we make a living in this atmosphere? We will need to change with the times to rematin competitive! What is your plan to prepare for this "New Normal"?
Did you know that 42% of patients pay dental expenses with a credit card? Compare that to 47% that pay with insurance! After seeing those numbers answer the question, why is everyone trying to ride the PPO Wave? The annual maximum converage is giong down, they take longer to pay and they are paying out less for services you provide.
Maybe we need a mindset change! Is it us, the provider, that is keeping the patients attached to the "Insurance Leash" by what we say when they ask about treatment costs? Do you ever hear yourself say, "We can check to see what your insurance covers for these crowns"? The maximums of today will only allow for about 1-2 crowns to be PARTIALLY covered. Yet, we place emphasis on the need for cheecking with insurance!
Instead of keeping our eyes on what "was", we reinvent a new way to market to a new patient demographic? How about implementing a new "In Office Dental Plan" (not insurance, but a discount plan) that would make dentistry affordable for your current patients without insurance! During downtimes, go to neigbhoring small businesses and market your practice to the small business owners who can't afford dental coverage for it's employees!
Let's find a way to make the dentistry they want and need work into their budgets! If we can do that, we will win against the ugly "Insurance Monster"!!!
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