The Dental Scam

I remember the date well. I had been out of dental school two years, had been in Rowley one year, and the February 1997 issue of Reader’s Digest hit the stands. The front cover read “EXCLUSIVE INVESTIGATION: How Dentists Rip Us Off “. Not only that, it was delivered to my office and was sitting in my reception area.
I immediately read the article to make sure I was aware of the contents. Inside, was the all too-familiar graphic depiction of a dentist menacingly hovering over a patient with the dreaded drill in hand. Add to that picture an accumulation of non-complimentary adjectives about dentists. By the author’s skillful manipulation of words, variations in dental practice patterns were presented as evidence of dishonesty.
The author’s “investigation” was him bringing x-rays of his teeth to different dentists around the country and getting treatment plans for his own mouth. The treatment plans ranged from nothing to an amazing $30,000! Had the presentation suggested anything about the fact that dental treatment plans can be quite variable between practitioners and encouraged the public to seek additional opinions, it wouldn’t have been so bad.
Judging by the public response logged on the Reader’s Digest website, the dental expose more than fulfilled the magazine’s desire to generate controversy and boost sales. One reader commented, “Dentists cannot be trusted! I do not let anyone mess with my teeth. I remove my own tartar…anyone who sees a dentist should have their head examined….not their teeth! They are all crooks!!” Another wrote, “I was hoping that I would be living in one of the cities that had one of the good dentists listed.”
Responses from dentists, while strongly admonishing the magazine for inflammatory reporting, often degenerated into windy rhetoric as they tried to refute the article’s charges. To be honest, it was apparent from the dentist’s responses that it rattled the nerves of the individuals who actually cared enough to write in to Reader’s Digest.
Could there really be a swing of $30,000 between dentists? Sounds like a lot to me. However, I can tell you that there can be significant differences between dentist’s treatment plans. That is not to say that there are a bunch of quacks out there though. Although there are always some, most dentists give you their honest opinion based on their educational background and philosophy of care.
And, this article had nothing to do with the range of fees between dentists. In other words, let’s assume the “treatment plan” was the same for all dentists and there was a comparison of fees between dentists. There can be a wide range there as well. Why is that?
Next week I’ll give you my response to “How Dentists Rip Us Off.” I will explain why I feel this “investigation” was unfair as well as a wake-up call from a dentist’s perspective. I will also look at it from your (the patient’s) side and give you some thoughts on how you can protect yourself from being “ripped-off”.