Getting Ripped Off? – Part 2

Last week I told you about an online column that was forwarded to me called “Is Your Dentist Ripping You Off?” Basically, the author was questioning why there can be such a discrepancy in fees or treatment plans between dentists. The author also gave suggestions on how to pick a dentist and did note, “Don’t select a dentist on price alone.”
This week I wanted to discuss some of the comments that readers made after the column was published. It is interesting to note that there were people on both sides of the debate. The first comment came from a dental assistant. She says, “It is fair to comparison shop but remember that cost is not always the best evaluation tool. It is a much better idea to check around with people you trust to see if they like their dentist.” She goes on to say, “Most dentists like their patients to be informed about their health and partner in all decisions. In our office, patients are always given the optimal solution as well as the options and their pros and cons.”
I would agree with these statements but would add that you, the potential patient, make the ultimate decision as to who your dentist is. Just because someone else “likes” a particular dentist does not mean that person is right for you. Although it is impossible for you to be able to evaluate the clinical skills of a particular dentist, which is unfortunate, the most important factor is that you trust who you are going to.
Here is a comment from another reader. “What’s disgusting is that the dentist pays the lab about $450 for a crown and marks it up 200% or more. What happened to the accepted profit margin for a business of 20-30%? What a rip.”
Can dentistry be expensive? Absolutely. Who is to blame? Is it the insurance companies that have not raised their yearly maximums since 1970? Is it the dentists who are price gouging? Is it the dentists who are over treating? Is it the government? I think of solutions for this all the time but always come up dry. There are so many factors. I have never heard one solution that fixes all the problems. If you have one, I would love to discuss it.
Here are some of the issues. Today, as I understand it, the cost of an undergraduate education at Tufts University is about $52,000 a year. That’s over $200,000 to get a bachelor’s degree. To be a dentist you have to spend at least four more years in school. Tufts Dental School is currently around $75,000 per year. That is another $300,000 to bring the total cost of 8 years of education to over $500,000. That is a tough nut to swallow on graduation day with no job, no income, no house and a beat-up car. I’m not saying you should feel badly for those poor dental graduates; I’m just saying it is a factor.
Any small business owner will tell you that running a small business is a challenge. Dentistry is no exception. The average overhead for a dental practice is tough to say because it depends on where you are in your career, what type of office you have, and where you practice. However, I can tell you it is high. Again, we dentists are not looking for sympathy: I’m just saying it is a factor.
There are other factors for cost such as the perceived level of expertise of a particular dentist, the quality of the laboratory used (which makes a huge difference), continuing education expense to keep current,demographics, etc. I will discuss more of these next week when I review some other interesting comments.