Issues

  • ISSUES
    • Oversupply of dentists in some counties in North Carolina
    • Under supply of dentists in some counties in North Carolina
    • Reports of Dentists doing unnecessary procedures
    • Low Insurance compensation for PPO contract Dentists
    • Aetna Insurance company refusing to pay for services by non contract dentists
    • BCBS deciding not to send checks to non contract dentist trying to force them to join BCBS network that will decrease the dentist income
    • Patients only seeing dentist in their network
    • Patients complain of the high cost of care
    • Patients complain of seeing a dentist who gives them a treatment estimate of $4000 or more
    • Employers complain of the high cost of dental insurance for their employees
    • There is no standard of care that dentist must adhere to and no penalty.
    • There is no standard that Insurance companies must adhere to regarding contract negations such networks that insurer maintains or sells access to
    • Prospective dental students have no advisory board that tracks how many dentist are needed in a given area or period of time
    • There is no advisory board the access the types of services and the numbers needed in the population
    • Dentist advertising no out of pocket expenses for insured patients
    • Dentist do not adhere to the ADA code of Ethics
    • Many dental students from other states trying to relocate to North Carolina
    • Involved parties
      • Patients
      • Dentists
      • Insurance Companies
      • Employers
      • North Carolina State Board Dental Examiners (NCSBDE)
      • Dental Schools (UNC-SOD & ECU-SOD)
      • Politicians
      • Dental Supply companies
      • Corporate Dental investors (Aspen Dental) who want all dentist to be employees of their practices (opticians/pharmacists model)
      • Dental Students
      • Prospective dental students
      • North Carolina Dental Society
      • Local dental societies such as Raleigh Wake County Dental Society (RWCDS)
    • Federal Trade Commission
  • Issues that contribute to maldistribution
    • UNC-SOD
      • UNC Dental School graduates 80 students every year.
      • UNC dental school receives capitation that means their budget is dependent upon how many students they graduate. There is no incentive for UNC to decrease enrollment at times when the supply of dentists in a certain area is excessive.
      • ECU-SOD
      • ECU Dental school never should have been allowed to be created. Students who graduate from ECU will not remain in the eastern part of the state as there is not enough revenue potential in the rural areas.
      • Insurance Companies
        • cut fees paid to DDS because DDS over treats
        • Ins co in PPO not informing a DDS of all the networks that they are in and changing networks with out giving DDS a choice to particiate
      • Employers
      • Corporate Dental investors
      • Politicians
        • get donations from insurance companies and corporate dental companies for favors of
      • Patients
        • failure by patients to get treatment for low cost issues rather then more costly ones
      • Dentists-
          • Dentists licensed and actively practicing in North Carolina 4,617
        • Registered Dental Hygienists licensed and actively practicing in North Carolina 5,727
        • would be required to document cases
        • staff compensation
        • data by specialty
        • When a patients sees a dentist for NP exam it is a requirement that a that a 20 image series of intra oral pictures be takes and insurance co pays $15
      • NCSBDE
      • Dental Students
      • I Have PERSONAL KNOWLEDGE OF A 2013 UNC GRADUATE WHO HAS $300,000 IN DEBT AS A RESULT OF dental school EDUCATION
      • Prospective Dental Students
      • Dental Supply Companies
    • Solutions
      • set up a method to determine where surpluses and needs are located by zip code
      • Set up a registry of where dental students will be able to see the areas in NC that can support their practices.
      • Set up a method to prevent a dentist from doing unnecessary treatment
      • set up registry of dental practices that may be up for sale
      • encourage dentists in overpopulated areas who are not booked a week in advance to combine their practices with another
      • Set up a uniform fee schedule for all insurance companies and dentists by zip codes
      • standard of what needs treatment
      • advisory board made of DDS, supply houses, employers, ins co, educators. politians