just wondering....

[dWiz]

how are the fees for various dental procedures set? is there a standard range you have to go by set by some ada-like organization that takes into account "average" overhead figures etc? obviously im a novice on the matter since im still only a sophomore in school , somebody care to clarify

 

[12YearOldKid]

how are the fees for various dental procedures set? is there a standard range you have to go by set by some ada-like organization that takes into account "average" overhead figures etc? obviously im a novice on the matter since im still only a sophomore in school , somebody care to clarify

You charge whatever you feel is fair for your services. Unless you sign up with insurance you are the only one who has any authority on what your fees should be.

 

[dWiz]

You charge whatever you feel is fair for your services. Unless you sign up with insurance you are the only one who has any authority on what your fees should be.

how do you know what's "fair"? do you go by what other practicing dentists charge

 

[pmantz]

how do you know what's "fair"? do you go by what other practicing dentists charge

What I was told is "you don't want to be the most expensive but you don't want to be the cheapest."

 

[BuckeyMcGee]

It is business, you have to be a good business-person to run a successful dental practice! If you are just starting out than of course you should offer the best deal in town or discounts in the hope of increasing your patient pool. There is no standard range set by the ADA. You don't want to be the type of dentist who rips off your patients but you should charge a fair price for your work.

 

[tinman831]

There's really no regulation for pricing. The only thing is that you are required to charge everyone the same price for performing the exact same procedure. Otherwise, it's pretty much a business game. You price it however you want. You price too high and your customers leave for cheaper. You price too cheap, and everyone else makes more money.

 

[DrJeff]

The ADA actually publishes a book which breaks down many fees for common procedures by zipcodes. So it can gice you an idea of what the max/min and if I recall the 30th, 50th, 70th and 90th percentile fees are.

For crown and bridge atleast, the old standard for fee determination is 5 times your lab fee.

In general you're free to set your fees where you want them based on what you feel your market will accept. If you participate with insurance plans, you can still set your fees where you want, but you'll endup having to adjust off some of that fee if it lies above what the insurance company determines the "Usual, Customary, and Reasonable (UCR)" fee is for your area.