“From Claims to Collections” Panel Discussion Kicks Off CDS Midwinter Meeting’s Opening Day

Experts in dental billing, coding and PPOs got together Thursday morning to address 3 important C’s—contracting, coding, and collecting, as a roundtable discussion hosted by Henry Schein, Inc jumpstarted this year’s Chicago Dental Society (CDS) Chicago Midwinter Meeting.

Titled “From Claims to Collections: Trends in Dental Reimbursement,” the discussion took place just prior to the opening of the exhibit hall at the 159th CDS Midwinter Meeting, February 22-24, 2024, at Chicago’s McCormick Place West building.

The discussion was moderated by Penny Reed, Chief Growth Officer, eAssist Dental Solutions. Reed is an industry veteran speaker and author with a strong background in revenue cycle management and dental practice growth.

The panel also featured Dr. James Anderson, co-founder and CEO, eAssist Dental Solutions; Christi Billquist, director of operations, Unitas PPO Solutions; and Greg Grobmyer, DDS, Editor-in-Chief, Dr. Charles Blair’s Dental Coding with Confidence, Practice Booster.

Among the topics covered were the importance to negotiate with PPOs, how critical coding and “clean claims” are to getting prompt collections; the role artificial intelligence (AI) is playing with insurance companies and clinicians; and knowing your fees based on your area and being confident to raise those fees appropriately when you should.

Working with experts who specialize in the areas of dental fee advisory solutions, the ever changing CDT code documentation and referencing, and collecting services is a must for clinicians, many of whom were not taught anything about coding while mastering their clinical skills, the panelists say.

“Since 2020, there have been over 200 code changes. I work with a lot of practices, and I know there are a ton of new codes that dentists don’t even know exist,” says Dr Grobmyer, who adds that there are another 91 code changes proposed for this year.

Dr Grobmyer notes that practices that don’t stay on top of CDT codes may be submitting claims with deleted codes that lead to denials. Just as important, practices may not be taking advantage of newer codes that would allow improved and increased collections.

“We want to audit proof your practice, protect against lawsuits and make sure you are getting what you deserve,” says Dr Grobmyer, Practice Booster's "Dental Coding with Confidence" and Insurance Solutions Newsletter editor-in-chief, and revenue enhancement program senior advisor.

“Nine percent of money collected or owed is just left out there,” he says. “That’s a large portion of the profits. Dentists need to learn proper coding practices and we’re trying to teach them.”

Both Dr Grobmyer and Dr Anderson stressed the importance of having proper documentation and clinical notes chairside and why it’s so critical to show and prove why treatments are “medically necessary.”

“Go look at your PMS [practice management system] system and review your code buttons,” Dr Anderson says. “You need to review every year and update properly.”

Dental claims management is essential to eliminating accounts receivable issues that can plague practices. Henry Schein’s eAssist is designed to help offices in collecting all insurance revenue that is rightfully owed to them.

Billquist says Unitas PPO Solutions seeks to help clinicians who have seen costs increase dramatically since COVID and at the same time have not experienced fee increases to keep up.

Unitas PPO Solutions offers services that help established PPO practices, start-up practices, fee-for-service practices, and any practice in need of credentialing help. Whether you are taking over another practice soon, adding new plans, or hiring an associate, outsourcing your credentialing needs to Unitas can deliver big time savings.

For additional information on Henry Schein’s eAssist dental solutions, click here.