Prosperident Pulse – January 2024

In Wendy Askins' lengthy service with Prosperident, she has done a lot to make dentistry safe from embezzlement.

Watch a video where Wendy discusses a challenging case she worked on HERE.

Prosperident has some great speakers, and we would love to liven up your event.

Jan 18	Rocky Mountain Dental Convention	Denver CO
Jan 29	Advanced Study Club	San Diego CA
Feb 6	South Calgary Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery	Calgary AB
Feb 22	Chicago Midwinter	Chicago IL
Feb 29	Planet DDS Orbit 2024	Atlanta GA
Mar 8	New Doctors' Summit	Irving TX
Mar 20	Macomb Dental Society	Troy MI
Apr 19	Michigan Dental Association	Lansing MI
April 26	Sailfish Study Club	Stuart FL
May 3	American Association of Orthodontists	New Orleans LA
Jul 26	Star of the South	Houston TX
Aug 24	South Carolina Dental Association	Greenville SC
Sep 11	American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons	Orlando FL

January is your last chance to contribute to our embezzlement survey. The information you provide about your practice's experience with embezzlement is of tremendous value to your profession. The survey is 10 questions and should take less than five minutes.

We will be publishing results in February, and as an added incentive, we will be doing a draw for three free copies of our CEO's embezzlement book from those who complete in January.

The Evils of Virtual Credit Cards (VCCs)

You may have heard me discuss this topic before (and there is some discussion of this topic in MY BOOK, but we continue to encounter practices that allow insurance companies to pay them via this odious method.

There are lots of things to dislike about being paid by VCC. First, it costs you money. Taking a payment from an insurance company via credit card means that, in addition to whatever PPO discounts you are dealing with, you must also pay your credit card processing company its 2-3%.

Second, VCCs can seriously mess up your practice's accounting. Practice management software was built with the assumption that insurance companies pay by check or EFT, and that credit card payments come from patients. PMS keeps separate track of balances owing by patients from insurance company balances. It is really easy for staff to post VCC payments as coming from patients instead of insurance companies, which makes it hard to monitor and collect amounts owing.

And finally, while I won't get into details, many thieves have found a way to monetize these payment cards. This is, of course, in addition to the money that insurance companies and your credit card company are already taking from you.

What to do about this? In the words of a former First Lady, "just say no." Although insurance companies will default to paying by VCC, I am not aware of any state where the dentist is unable to opt out and be paid by EFT or check. Send them a letter opting out. You might have to send two letters, but do it. While VCCs are cheaper and easier for insurance companies, helping increase insurance company profits probably wasn't on your list of New Years' resolutions.

Want to talk to me about your practice? Click HERE.