Letters to the Editor
Dear Dr . Terry :
In reviewing the Insurance Connection in the May / June 2010 issue of the Pennsylvania Dental Journal , it appears to me that the more things change , the more they stay the same . It absolutely blows my mind to think that fellow practitioners will sign an agreement which allows a third party carrier to dictate the fees which they can charge in their dental office for non-covered services . But , that report says 85 percent of the participants in the UCCI plan signed that contract . Are we really that ignorant , as lambs being led to the slaughter ?
For years , the PDA committee that addresses dental insurance issues , which has been known by numerous committee titles , in addition to the ADA Council on Dental Benefit Programs , has struggled to protect our inalienable right to charge fees that we think are appropriate based upon the technology , the time , the materials and the difficulty of procedure . Each and every dental office must decide for itself what fee is appropriate for each service that is provided and this is as it should be . However , to acquiesce to the dental insurance industry telling us what fees we can charge is appropriate to dental socialism . The various committees have struggled with this issue because many of our colleagues will readily agree to have a third-party carrier dictate the fees that they charge for specific services . Unfortunately , this puts those of us who refuse to participate in these plans at a distinct disadvantage , as patients will constantly hassle us to reduce our fees or they will leave our practice and go to that of a “ participant .”
In Pennsylvania , we are attempting to have legislation passed which will prohibit insurance companies from the practice of dictating fees for services that they do not cover . In the journal article it states that UCCI does not have plans to change this policy unless the Pennsylvania General Assembly passes legislation prohibiting this insurance practice . The bottom line , my dear colleagues , is that we must become proactive and contact our legislators on this important issue .
Rest assured that the coffers of UCCI and the other third parties are funding our legislators ’ PACs much more than we as individuals can do . However , if we continue to try and remain unified and support this legislative activity , just maybe , we may obtain success in the passing of this important legislation .
But , on the other hand , apparently 85 percent of the participants could care less whether or not the legislature acts on this issue . We can only continue to hope .
Sincerely , George A . Kirchner , DDS
Dear Editor : I enjoyed reading Dr . Mark Funt ’ s “ It ’ s Your Money ” piece on health care reform ( July / August ), since it ’ s always stimulating to read a strong opinion even when you don ’ t agree with it . I can appreciate Dr . Funt ’ s pro-free market , anti-big government philosophy , although the idea that government is the problem rather than the solution would seem to have been an easier sell back in the 1980s than in 2010 ( Halliburton ? BP ? Enron ? Blackwater ? Bernie Madoff ?). But I was disappointed that Dr . Funt ended his article by repeating a story that ’ s been going around that Congressional staffers , who helped write the Health Care Reform legislation , put in a loophole exempting themselves from the new law . On the face of it , the implication is that these liberal policy wonks , who , despite having devoted years writing and rewriting a national health care bill , in their heart of hearts know the bill isn ' t any good , and so they surreptitiously hid a clause deep in the bowels of the bill to exempt themselves , and only themselves . Sort of a DaVinci Code scenario . But alas , as with so many sources of right-wing outrage sailing through the Internet and over the radio waves , there is much less fire here than smoke . A nonpartisan website , FactCheck . org , explains that all members of Congress and their staffs are covered by the new health care bill . The exemption issue came up because of some overly specific wording in a Republican amendment to the bill , regarding which government employees would be required to buy their insurance through the new state exchanges . Both parties realize the need to correct the wording . There is no hidden agenda . Passing on a half-truth like this is not harmless . Our nation has been paralyzed by distrust of government , and more and more politicians are elected not to improve government , but to dismantle it . You may believe , as I do , that the health care law is a brave , if incomplete , attempt to right serious injustices in our health care system , or you may believe that the whole thing is a huge boondoggle , but in making our point , let ’ s not fan the flames of anti-government paranoia .
Jay Cohen , DMD
( continued on page 8 )
September / October 2010 • Pennsylvania Dental Journal
7