The Dawson Academy Blog

Dental Articles on Occlusion, Centric Relation, Restorative Dentistry & More

Return to Blog Index

Taking Dental Insurance Out of the Decision Making Equation

dental insurance equationOne of the tips that I would recommend is changing your vocabulary when you talk to patients regarding insurance.

One of the things that we hear quite often is something like this: "This is what your insurance will cover." I would like you to change that to, "This is what your insurance provides a benefit for." So changing your attitude or mindset, especially with your team when it comes to discussing insurance, is very beneficial for to getting the insurance out of your practice.

So for example, if you're presenting a treatment plan, one of the things that you could say is, "This is what we expect as a benefit from your insurance." Remember, insurance is a benefit. It's not a dependency. By saying it in such a way, you are taking the insurance out of the equation and relaying the information directly to the patient.

HubSpot Video

Another tip is to use the word reimbursement.

Reimbursement reflects the benefit specifically. In other words, "This is what we would expect your insurance to reimburse you." When you say it that way, the patient thinks of it as a benefit. In other words, when the patient pays for a service, this is what they will get back. Think of your insurance as a coupon. It's a benefit that reimburses you for your services.

Want to hear more tips regarding dental insurance? Click here to watch the dental insurance roundtable webinar hosted by The Dawson Alumni Association.

How to Effectively Communicate with Dental Patients

Photo by Roman Mager on Unsplash

Picture of Dr. Neeraj Khanna

Neeraj Khanna, D.D.S. is a senior faculty member and study club leader at The Dawson Academy. Dr. Khanna also owns his own practice, Khanna Dentistry, in Geneva, Illinois, which provides comprehensive dental services, including cosmetic and restorative dentistry.