Many Americans today unfortunately do not have dental insurance, and see oral health as a luxury, which has implications on the population's overall health. Quality Dental Plan, a program based in Reno, Nev., has developed a plan aimed to help people afford dental care.
Dan Marut, DMD, founder of Quality Dental Plan, was kind enough to speak with us about the healthcare forces shaping dental care, how the economy affects dentists and more.
Q: What healthcare forces shape the need for Quality Dental Plan?
Dr. Marut: Rising healthcare costs associated with the delivery of dental care and coverage limitations associated with dental insurance and its administration hassles lead to the creation of Quality Dental Plan (QDP). Patients needed a more direct, local way to save on the costs of dentistry that is straightforward and easy to understand. Dental practices needed a more streamlined approach to increasing access to care in their communities and a way to decrease administration hassles. QDP solves this by providing a direct link to the local dental practice where a program is customized to fit the needs of their community and their practice.
Q: What has the reaction been so far from both patient and dentist?
DM: Outstanding! In the QDP business model the relationship always remains between the dental practice and the patient….the way it should be. If a patient has questions about treatment or benefits about being part of the practice, they are always addressed directly with their local dental practice. As patients, you can always be sure you are dealing with your local provider, not a call center located in another part of the country or another part of the globe. By eliminating the red tape and administration costs savings, are passed on directly to the patient by their dentist.
Q: Has the plan been helpful for dentists?
DM: Absolutely! By offering an alternative to the traditional dental insurance model, dentists using QDP are able to increase access to care and develop a customized program that makes sense for their community and dental practice. Dentists and team members can decrease administration costs associated with traditional third-party insurance programs.
Q: As the economy begins to turn around, are more people going to the dentist?
And if not, why?
DM: Dental visits are usually tied to costs and income. This includes having disposable income but also having a plan. The more the public is educated about the benefits of oral health, along with its savings, the more people will go to the dentist. Prevention is not only the best medicine, it's the best kind of dentistry. If we can increase access to care and prevent dental disease before it happens or treat it earlier, the savings to the public can be quite substantial.
Q: Where do you see the dental insurance field headed in the future?
DM: Traditional dental insurance is usually not catastrophic nor is it comprehensive like its medical counterpart. Many times dental insurance can be compared to having a "coupon" that comes with many limitations, high costs and administration hassles. In the QDP model, we eliminate the limitations, high costs, and hassles associated with the standard dental insurance model. These savings are passed onto the patient and the local dental office. As the healthcare benefits landscape changes, I fully expect more creative solutions to be put forth by leaders in both dentistry and medicine, putting patients first. The movement has begun in dentistry all across the country at the local level by implementing QDP.
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