As a dentist or orthodontist, you know that when you recommend a procedure to a patient one of the 1st things they ask is, “Does my insurance cover that?” And as we all know, dental insurance doesn’t cover as much as people expect it will.
Patients are trained by medical insurance to think that most things will be covered at a high percentage. However, dental insurance has never worked that way. At best, it will cover a portion, but even with a good plan, the patient is likely to have a sizable out-of-pocket cost.
How do you communicate with your patients on what to expect from their dental insurance? How does your office help them maximize their benefits?
Keep reading for tips on how to help your patients get the most from their benefits. Of course – this will also help patients accept more treatment when it’s easy for them to work out the finances!
Dental Insurance Benefits
Patients do not often have a strong grasp of dental insurance and how it works. You can help educate them on their benefits – what is covered, what is not, and when coverage renews.
You can also help them plan to maximize their benefits. Often it makes sense to do certain procedures in 1 calendar year, and then wait for the benefits to renew and do other procedures in the next year (assuming they are non-urgent).
Patients feel a tremendous sense of relief when your financial expert can hold their hand through this process. They’re also grateful when you lend assistance to help them get the most out of the insurance they’re paying for. This takes the pressure off patients deciding to accept treatment when you can make it work for them.
Planning for Flexible Spending and Insurance Changes
Most patients with insurance have their open enrollment period around late October or sometime in November. And often they don’t think about their open enrollment period until the day their changes are due!
You can be a great help to patients by reminding them to research their benefits early if they’re planning to change dental insurance plans – and also to plan to set aside any Flexible Spending Account funds for larger procedures.
Now is a perfect time of year to be reminding patients 1) to use up their benefits for the current year and 2) to plan for their benefits in the next year.
It’s a great idea to have a standard email campaign to remind patients of both of these points. And there’s much more you can do! Get into the habit of talking to all patients who come in about planning for their benefits both for the current and next year. Also, keep a list throughout the year of patients who need larger procedures and are waiting to set aside money or renew their dental benefits – give these patients a personal call now to remind them to plan.
This enormously valuable to busy patients who forget about these things. Far from being a bother, patients appreciate your attention to their specific needs and helping them get the treatment that’s been prescribed to them.
Helping Patients Finance Dental Treatment
It’s always important to have other mechanisms in your office to help patients finance their dental or orthodontic care. Some offices use 3rd party financing companies to offer 0% interest to patients and low monthly fees.
There are also programs available for patients to have money automatically withdrawn at time intervals to pay for their dental treatment.
While you never want to become a bank and a lender, often dental and orthodontic practices will have low-risk in-house financing options for patients so they can pay for their care through a down-payment and monthly payments. Some offices will even have patients pre-pay in installments for large procedures.
Whatever solution you find is right for your practice, make sure you have something to offer your patients so they can finance their dental care comfortably. You never want money to get in the way of your patients getting the treatment they need. Make it easy for them to say, “Yes!” to your recommendations.
Making Finances Easy for Your Dental Patients
When you’re able to coach your patients through paying for their dental care and maximizing their benefits, they’re much more likely to accept treatment – which also helps keep your business steady month-over-month. It’s all part of developing a marketing mindset within your practice, and having a full-service approach to your patients’ needs.
You can help them maximize their dental insurance benefits so they get the most out of their investment. It’s also valuable to remind them to plan for both the current and next year in terms of changing their coverage, or electing to set aside money in a Flexible Spending Account. Lastly, always have financing options that work both for your business and for your patients’ needs. Make it easy for them, and they will accept the treatment they need.
At ClearEdge we’re here to help you build internal marketing strategies to coach your patients through the insurance and financing process! We also provide online and external marketing to get the word out to your patients. Give us a call today, we’d love to work with you!