The Massachusetts Academy of General Dentistry endorses dental insurance reform, so patients’ premium dollars are spent on patient care.
Massachusetts law establishes an 88 percent medical loss ratio (MLR) for medical insurance plans, but there is currently no MLR for dental insurance plans. An MLR is the portion of premium revenue that a healthcare insurancecompany spends on claims, patient care, and healthcare quality for its customers.
One dental insurer’s IRS 990 form documents it spent less than 60% of premium revenue on patient care and kept the remaining $383 million for administrative costs, exorbitant executive salaries, and profits.
Through a ballot initiative, a dental insurance MLR will appear as Question 2 on the statewide ballot in the November 8 election. The referendum will ensure MLRs apply to dental plans in the same way they currently apply to medical plans. This ballot initiative would make dental providers more transparent and accountable to the patients they serve. If passed, this consumer protection law is a value-guarantee that requires dental insurers to pay at least 83% of revenue towards patient care, or refund patients with the dollars that have not been spent.
“As dentists, we see patients in and out of our chairs. We have the unique and important opportunity to inform and send the message to all of our patients and colleagues,” says Massachusetts AGD president Sarita Patel.
The Massachusetts AGD Board has been active in motivating members to spread the word in a grassroots manner, going door-to-door is still the best way to inform our communities.
If the ballot question wins, dental insurance premiums will either stay the same or decrease. Funds used to support increased patient care will come from removing corporate waste. Patients will be refunded if dental insurance companies don’t meet the 83 percent MLR. The increase in premiums is being vastly skewed and falsely claimed in some of the marketing that opposes this initiative.
MA AGD recognizes the hard work of the Committee on Dental Insurance Quality. Members are encouraged to vote “YES on Question 2,” inform patients of the initiative, and visit the website – there are opportunities to volunteer, endorse, and donate to support the dental ballot question.
For more information, visit https://fairdentalinsurance.org/ The Academy of General Dentistry (AGD) is a professional association of more than 40,000 general dentists, dedicated to providing quality dental care and oral health education to the public. Founded in 1952, AGD is the largest association for general dentists in the world and serves the needs and represents the interests of general dentists. The AGD’s Region 1 consists of general dentists from Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont with each state having its own constituents. For more information about the AGD, visit www.agd.org.
