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We’ve trained hundreds of practices here at MPMB, both in state and out of state, and I would say roughly forty percent or more of them are not members of the ADA and their state associations. When I ask them why they chose not to be members, the answers have a common ground. Another problem I believe is contributing to the decrease in ADA and State dental membership is the fragmentation of efforts protecting dentists from state to state. If there is one thing that has become clear to Tracy and I as we have passed legislation and defended dentists against dental insurance company’s unethical policies, it’s the simple fact that the ADA picks their battles, and the state associations don’t know what battles to pick. Support the show

Shouldn't it be licensed dentists who determine generally accepted practice standards? Dental Insurance companies are trying to fill that role and need to be stopped.Tracy and I attempted this one topic for legislation, which reads: “Generally accepted practice standards for dentistry, are to be determined by the majority of professionally licensed dentists in Utah and managed by the state dental association.”  Our talking point was this: Our proposal would prevent unlicensed dental plan executives from setting dental standards of care. Sounds simple…right?  The pushback was unbelievable...Support the show

How often do we hear dental thought leaders tell us to drop dental plans, or at least the worst ones? Inevitably, someone will ask the question, “which ones are the worst ones?” Or better yet, they ask, “please define what is meant by the ‘worst’ ones, aren’t they all bad?” Then there are the grumblings from all of us on how bad the reimbursement rates are, and how impossible it is to provide quality dentistry on a patient who is covered by a PPO plan you are a provider for.  Last but not least is our front office team members who have to deal with the dental insurance plans, their reps, and the deceptive EOBs, not to mention the patients who love to complain about their insurance coverage, or lack thereof. I sometimes don’t understand why the majority of front office team members are not in group therapy in every state. I want to talk about the importance of fighting on principle, not on a platitude when protecting dentists and the patients we serve.Support the show

So many thought leaders in our profession despise this very topic. They cringe at the thought someone like me would even suggest to you that your mission is to make money. But it’s called reality. The mission of any business should be to achieve success, and that success is accomplished by being profitable on all, or as many procedures as possible, which leads us to the term “vision.”Support the show

In this discussion, I ask them some very important questions. Please allow me to just jump to their answers for now, I’m sure you can figure out the questions, and here are their answers: 1-We are maintaining infection, not eliminating it. This just doesn’t make sense… 2-I’ve always felt that periodontal disease can be eliminated, but not with our current treatment protocols, and especially not with my office treating it to insurance limitations. 3-I have no idea why we don’t use antibiotics. It doesn’t make sense. 4-All of our patients bleed in almost all the areas of needed SRP at the six-week exam. And all of them continue to have forever periodontal disease if I’m being honest…Support the show

It seems like every week I see an advertisement from a dental consultant advocating the need to drop dental insurance and build a strictly fee-for-service (FFS) practice. Many of these dental consultants teach their clients what I call a very deceptive tactic, one that loses the patient’s trust right from the beginning every time, and we begin our podcast right there.Support the show

Why do so many solo dentists take the stink bait offers of DSOs without investigating what they are really giving up when swallowing hook, line, and sinker to these predators? The main reason dentists give up their autonomy and business opportunities are because they don’t know what they don’t know. We are going to tell you what the corporate predators are not telling you, that you need to know. We begin right here! There are so many places to begin this topic on that I almost do not know where to start. So, I think I’ll begin with our own experiences here at MPMB.Support the show

I read a statement from a dentist on one of the dental networking groups that caught my eye. The comment, for some reason, made me feel bad for that dentist, and my heart really ached for him. That may sound a bit cheesy, but I care about all of you, and your teams. Tracy and I learned so much about the inner workings of dental insurance companies when we got our Utah Dental Law passed. Some of it good, and some really bad, but grateful for the educational experience we had with the Network Leasing, Down-coding, and Bundling Protections Law. Back to this dentist’s comments, his deductive logic and reasoning to his statement simply lacked intuitive business skills and accurate definitions in regards to state laws, which is something Tracy and I specialize in here at MPMB. This is a very important topic all dentists need to understand, and we begin our podcast right there…Support the show

What happens if the office manager croaks, the hygienist calls in sick, or the dental assistant runs off with prince charming? Does anyone see the need for some cross-training? Missing a team member for even one day can lead to chaos in a dental office. Team members feel overwhelmed, which could ultimately lead to a decline in the quality of patient care. It doesn’t have to be this way.Let Go Of Your Control....Support the show

The majority of dental teams have been convinced that if dental insurance won’t pay for it, they have to write it off. Heaven forbid you actually charge the patient directly for services the PPO Plan won’t cover.Dental insurance plans don’t pay for tooth whitening, yet most dental offices charge the patient for it directly. The same applies to electric toothbrushes. In addition, most dental insurance plans don’t pay for dental implants. Yet every office seems to charge for those products and services, right? In those three examples just listed, you wouldn’t think of not charging the patient for those services. Am I wrong? Nope!Support the show

Over the last several months Tracy and I have observed “Leaders” emerge from the ranks of every type of dental team member in the dental offices we have had the opportunity to train. Leadership is critical to the success of any business, and it’s why two of our team training modules focus on leadership skills. And it’s why we take a deep dive into effective leadership skills in our office manager/front office trainings.Support the show

You absolutely can if you allow yourself to paid fairly by holding the patient responsible for their dental care, instead of doing it for free like you’ve done for years. Stop listening to misinformation, and lies, from dental consultants, and others who have never read one damn insurance contract, never spoken and asked the “right” questions with insurance managers, never read the CDT Code Book cover to cover, have no understanding of laws within the state you practice, let alone have never passed a dental law protecting dentists and the patients they care for. With that said, look for opportunities, not obstacles, in your pursuit of obtaining and maintaining a financially healthy dental practice filled with happy satisfied patients you serve, along with happy team members, including you Doc, working smarter…not harder.Sign up for our Team Training today! It's guaranteed...Support the show

So many times we see dental teams struggle with charging their patients for the services they provide. They often times feel they are nickel and diming their patients. Nothing could be further from the truth. Layering your treatment plans, being transparent with the codes and services you have diagnosed, and being paid fairly for those services is not gouging, nor nickel and diming the patient. This is an actual mental block many dentists suffer from because they are sincerely altruistic. They forget they have to learn skills to run their businesses, and if they are not profitable, they will fail. PPO Plans are constantly nickel and diming dental offices with reimbursements, or the lack thereof. Understanding their contracts, and how to be paid fairly for dental procedures is what we teach here at MPMB.Support the show

How many times do we attend a CE course, a church meeting, or some lecture somewhere, and the presenter says something where our mind says, “oh, they lost me on that statement.” Have you ever thought that maybe you missed what was being said because your mind was off in some delusion of grandeur, or you were on your damn phone not paying attention?Maybe what you thought you heard wasn't accurate. Our thought leadership needs to be the search of truth, and not our own bias. Opportunity can be lost with just one confirmation bias. Support the show

There are times where I wonder if the ADA really knows what is going on with dentists on the front lines. It’s apparent their actions often times do not reflect it.  Many years ago, Tracy and I began research on bundling of procedures by dental insurance companies. We began to build the case against third-party payers with their constant tactics of preventing us from being paid fairly for the services we provide as dentists and hygienists.   Again, years ago, Tracy came across a statement from the ADA Center for Professional Success which reads, “Claims bundling is the systematic combining of distinct dental procedures by third-party payers that results in a reduced benefit for the patient/beneficiary. The ADA considers bundling of procedures to be potentially fraudulent.”If that is the case, then why is bundling verbiage found in the CDT Code Book?Support the show

Don’t worry, I’m not going to tell you there are dentists that make things happen, those who watch things happen, and those who wonder what the hell happened. It’s not that simple. But, could there be a fourth doc? Or is the fourth doc just a unicorn...Support the show

The list is long and unfortunately distinguished. Don’t get me wrong, most of the time we don’t like dealing with insurance plans and their reps either. But we are the only major consulting company that teaches dentists, and their teams, to keep them, because we know how to be profitable with them. So, who teaches dentists to drop their PPO Plans? Individuals who don’t know what they don’t know. Great leaders don’t resist or fear change, they embrace it, or even initiate it. Be that dental leader, and make that call to us here at MPMB. I promise you it will be the best business decision you make in your dental career.Support the show

Insurances, laws, office manager and front office training, Disney Institute and leadership, ending with DSOs and why you don't need them. To date, there is one DSO that is  showing some promise with how they function and treat their docs, but the jury is still out. If they come through with their promise, we will sing their praises and point you to them if running your own business just isn't in your DNA. The rest of the DSO culture is something dentists need to be careful of. Support the show

Are we receiving what we are paying for with our dental supplies? Every time I asked my assistant for an A1 shade of my new composite, I would think she was handing me a “used” compule. The A2 compules were not much better. After several months of this happening, it dawned on me. “Could the company be having issues with the manufacturing process of their composite being placed in each compule?” Or, could it be something worse, like intentional under-loading of the most popular shades to increase their profit margins.Support the show

"The title may sound harsh, but after working with hundreds of dental offices, we’ve discovered that nearly every office does the same things that negatively affect the practice. These actions ultimately decrease revenue, patient retention and employee satisfaction. The worst part, many of the things we will mention have been preached in dentistry for YEARS. So, we can’t really blame you, but we can help “change you” for the better!"Baylee GunnellMarketing DirectorMy Practice My BusinessSupport the show