Twenty-one percent of dentists plan to drop out of at least one dental insurance network within the next three months, according to a poll from the American Dental Association Health Policy Institute.
The poll was taken as part of the institute's monthly "Economic Outlook and Emerging Issues in Dentistry" report from February, surveying 1,168 dentists.
More dentists not affiliated with DSOs have plans to drop out of networks, with 21.6 percent intending to drop out compared to 16.7 percent of DSO-affiliated dentists.
Younger dentists have more intentions to drop networks, with 26.9 percent of dentists between the ages of 35 and 44 planning to do so in the next three months. Only 15.4 percent of dentists 65 and older have the same plans.
Dentists are planning on dropping insurance networks that include an average of 25.5 percent of their patient base.
Since Jan. 1, 16.6 percent of dental practice owners said they have already dropped out of insurance networks.