HIGHBusinessTier 1
‘We are our own worst enemy’: Why dentistry needs to stand up to payers
SourceBecker's Dental + DSO ReviewTier 1Hard News
By Cameron Cortigiano
Originally at beckersdental.com
Summary & scoring by The Bell Brief (Dr. Jennifer Bell) using the Drill-Down Protocol (Drill-Down Score) — not the original publisher.
Why it matters for dental
Dentists continue to absorb multi-decade real-dollar cuts as payer rates lag inflation and practice overhead, prompting calls for collective pushback.
Key points
- Reimbursement rates have lagged inflation for decades; dentists who accept these contracts subsidize payers with their own shrinking margins.
- Fragmented solo or small-group pushback is ineffective—coordinated, data-driven negotiation by larger groups or associations is required to reset fee schedules.
- Failure to act accelerates consolidation: financially squeezed independents are prime targets for DSOs that can leverage scale against payers.
- Key action for every practice: model true cost per procedure, identify loss-leading codes, and prepare contract-renewal data packages before the next negotiation cycle.
Who should care
OwnerAssociateDSO
Read the original on Becker's Dental + DSO Review
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