Managed Care in Dentistry

It is estimated that healthcare reform will push nearly 37 million new patients into dental offices nationwide. Currently, many of these offices do business under traditional "fee-for-service" dental plans. This book instructs the dentist or office manager how to understand the mechanisms of managed care plans, structure the dental office to accommodate them, and expertly analyze the advantages and disadvantages of joining any particular managed care panel. Bryan Quattlebaum is a dentist/periodontist as well as senior consultant for Delta dental plans of California. His text familiarizes the reader with new terminology crucial to managed care and outlines the radical changes in dental practice structures mandated by healthcare reform. In addition, he discusses the key analytical skills needed for assessing multi-panel participation and devising strategies for dental practice survival in the managed care environment.