Insurance helps the public access health and dental services at a more affordable cost. It’s a necessary component to the healthcare industry and economy. The work required for effective dental insurance management and processing requires strong tact in thorough investigation and research practices. Without these strong practices in place, it’s easy for a dental office to fall victim to common insurance pitfalls that can negatively impact operations, collections, and patient retention.
Working with different dental practices over the years has uncovered common insurance errors experienced among the front office and clinical teams. Common dental insurance pitfalls to avoid include:
- ?Not investigating beyond the initial information the insurance company volunteers in the insurance coverage report;
- ?Not giving the front desk staff enough time to complete a thorough treatment plan; and
- ?Not differentiating multiple plans under a single insurance carrier.
Smart Investigation with Insurance Companies
During the initial dental treatment planning process, it’s common for insurance companies to return a report with preliminary information, but not necessarily include full in-depth details like waiting period and replacement period limitations, treatments received, and benefits used (in the current coverage calendar year). Investigating beyond the preliminary information received is integral to fully understand the treatment coverage and payment implications.
I recently saw the mistake of staff not investigating deeper beyond the information volunteered by an insurance company. A patient’s benefits were checked against their insurance and the practice was informed they had benefits for restorative work (50 percent covered). The doctor’s office then performed the prescribed restorative work (a crown) and submitted the claim, which was denied due to the patient not being covered for a crown. During the appeal process with the insurance company, I was informed the insurance company doesn’t consider crowns restorative, even though the ADA code book states crowns are restorative. This particular company considered crowns in their “major services” category and the patient did not have coverage for “major services”. Ultimately, the patient ended up having to pay 100 percent of the procedure because someone misread the breakdown of benefits. According to this patient’s plan, a crown was a major procedure, and nowhere on the benefits breakdown did it say no coverage for “major services”, it just showed what they did have coverage for. The dental office staff can’t assume insurance companies are going to disclose all necessary information upfront in the initial check. Yes, this may seem backward, but it’s the process at play and must be played correctly for the benefit of the patient and financial health of the dental practice.
Develop a Well-Researched Treatment Plan & Timely Patient Communication
We’ve all heard the saying ‘time is money’. This is particularly important when informing patients in a timely manner of their dental treatment plan. When the patient is in the chair, clinical reasoning is fresh in their mind, but once the pain has subsided, they leave the office, go back to their life and forget about making a timely treatment decision. The urgency of the treatment has subsided and patients often think an intermediate fix is sufficient enough if they are not fully informed on further care and treatment options.
The back and front office need to work in harmony during the patient’s visit to produce an accurate, well-informed treatment plan. This starts with the clinical team giving the treatment coordinator enough time to put the treatment plan together before the patient is sitting across from her. The coordinator should be explaining the financial options and scheduling the appointment, not still researching the details of the plan. Among the financial implications, the treatment plan should explain to the patient the cause, effect, treatment option(s), and what could happen if the problem isn’t fixed beyond the doctor’s assessment. This gives the patient a choice and responsibility of making an informed decision in a timely manner.
Providing accurate insurance and payment information to patients before a procedure (beyond preventative care) is the linchpin to satisfied and trusted patient relationships. Slowing down, taking an investigative approach, and asking detailed questions with the dental insurance companies will help your dental practice avoid these common insurance pitfalls and rise above towards dental insurance management excellence.