How do you collect payment when you are out of network, and the company prohibits patients from assigning benefits to the practice? What are the patient’s payment options?  Can the patient use HSA/FSA?  The answer is that the patient can use HSA/FSA to pay the practice in full and then reimburse their HSA/FSA when the insurance reimbursement check is received. According to the IRS website:  “If amounts were distributed during the year from an HSA because of a mistake of fact due to reasonable cause, the account beneficiary may repay the mistaken distribution no later than t ..read more

According to the U.S. Department of Education, 54% of U.S. adults 16-74 years old–about 130 million people–lack proficiency in literacy.  These individuals have a reading aptitude below the sixth-grade level. There are numerous reasons for this shocking statistic: poor education, learning difficulties, learning English as a second language, or simply lack of exposure to English.  These issues are apparent across many demographics and may affect even high achievers.  For example, an adult literacy program reported that one student was a well-respected cardiologist ..read more

There is an old joke among entrepreneurs: “I lose money on every transaction, but I make it up in volume.” There are times when this principle applies to dental insurance reimbursement.  The insurance companies are actually making it easier for dentists to decide to drop insurance plans because reimbursement rates are low, especially in light of cumulative double-digit inflation over the last two years, which makes the cost of delivering services higher than ever.  You can only discount fees so much before profits turn to losses. In spite of these economic realities, h ..read more

Most dental team training programs have a glaring omission: clinical team members are often not trained to answer patients’ questions regarding fees.  Administrative team members at the front deal with these questions every day, and many are quite adept at explaining value for the dollar with regard to proposed treatment.  However, when patients turn to an assistant or a hygienist chairside and express concern about dental fees, the clinical staff are often unprepared. It is common for back-office team members to be uncomfortable with these types of questions.  They may respond ..read more

Here’s a very timely new dental practice management course. Attention Meeting Planners: This course is available for you to schedule for your dental organization. It’s designed for dentists and dental teams. Dental Disruptions Course Description: The dental practice environment has changed more in the last five years than in the previous twenty years.  Solo practices in particular are facing overhead and staffing challenges; more group practices are emerging; and DSO’s are offering opportunities and challenges.  At the same time, technology is revolutionizing not only clini ..read more

The Consumer Price Index went up 5.4% in July, the largest jump in 13 years. In addition, according to Moody’s Analytics, the U.S. is experiencing “the strongest wage growth in a quarter century.” Inflation is overhead on steroids. Dental staff salaries and benefits are the largest overhead line items in dental practices. It’s time to analyze the numbers in your dental practice and raise fees. You want to be fair to your patients, of course, and large increases for fee-for-service patients can lead to pushback. The goal is to proceed methodically, raise some fees more tha ..read more

David: This is David Schwab. And today I’m really excited because my guest is Linda Harvey, a nationally recognized healthcare risk management and compliance expert who helps dentists and teams understand and navigate regulatory requirements. She is the founder and president of the Dental Compliance Institute, as well as a compliance consulting firm. Her career in dentistry began as a dental hygienist. Since that time, she has worked in corporate risk management and has been recognized as a distinguished fellow in the American society of Healthcare Risk Management. In addition, she was honored ..read more

Welcome to the first part of my three-part series on the psychology of practice transition.  I’ll be talking about how to get an associate into a practice with the goal that they will buy the practice. Today, let’s discuss today the selling doctor’s concerns. If you’re the selling doctor, one of your big concerns is, “I don’t want to make a mistake. I want to find someone who’s the right fit.”  I will tell you, trust your instincts. Don’t ignore any red flags. No, nobody’s perfect, but if something’s nagging at you, if you’re not sleeping at night, if you’re worried that ma ..read more

My Team Training Video Series is now available at a reduced price. Use THIS PROMO CODE: SAVE 200. Click this link for complete info. When prompted to order, use promo code SAVE200. The series comes with a 60-day money back guarantee. Many people ordered when I presented a live seminar, but if you haven’t ordered yet, here’s your chance with a discount ..read more

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