Dos and don'ts for practice profitability: Review hygiene fees

Review hygiene fees annually

Dental practices must update fees on a regular basis to accurately reflect the cost of care being provided. Inaccurate hygiene fees (low or high) can prevent this department from achieving its goals. Outdated hygiene fees are a barrier to increasing practice profitability.

Adjust fees. Practices should compare their fees for all services, including hygiene, to other offices using national data from the ADA and other fee surveys. Based on this information, practices should make once-a-year fee adjustments if necessary.

Don't overlook the possibility of unhappy patients. When adjusting your fees, always be prepared to answer the resulting patient questions. The fees for the dental hygiene visit are often the most recognized fees by patients. Questions will definitely arise. Always use scripting to help your team best answer patient concerns.