Valentine’s Day is long over, but with spring showing signs of its much-anticipated arrival, it still feels like love is in the air. The birds sound happy flitting about, new life is about to spring into action, but if you’re still in bad relationships that are dragging you down, it’s hard to move forward. We’re not talking about any old relationship. We’re talking about insurance – and it’s them, not you, who is behaving badly.
Partnerships are a mix of giving and taking, pulling one’s weight for the mutual benefit of the relationship, and compromising so both partners get ahead. Yet the relationship between dentists and the insurance middleman is more like parasitism, with practice owners the unlucky host.
How long do you keep someone around who always expects you to pick up the bill? Who tells you your experience doesn’t matter? That it’s their way or the highway? Or whose hand you always find in your wallet taking “just a little bit more?”
You’ll be waiting for an eternity if you hope insurance will do a 180 and start reimbursing you for your worth, ask you for your treatment opinion, and give back “just a little bit more” because you deserve it.
Will there ever come a day where you sit down with this toxic partner and tell them it’s over? Tell them it’s not you, but rather their greedy hostile takeover of your practice that’s the root cause of the breakup?
Leaving a relationship you’ve had for years can be worrisome. Will you find something better? Can you thrive without their help? Are you worth what you charge your patients? The answer to these questions is a resounding YES! We’ve seen doctors find something better. We’ve seen them thrive with different methods. And we believe you are worth every penny you charge.
Of course, planning is needed when you end a partnership that’s treating you badly. Mapping out your exit requires alternative income options that come in the form of memberships (check your state laws), specializing in high-demand services, building a great reputation with the community, marketing your practice to insurance-independent patients, or simply charging more for treatments.
This doesn’t have to happen overnight. Small shifts in the patients you take on, those you don’t, and tweaking your marketing messaging are great places to start. Once you get a taste of independence from insurance-heavy cases, you won’t want to go back.
We understand this can be overwhelming. It’s tough leaving a relationship you’ve been in for so long, especially when it seems as though it’s the norm. But if you don’t take the steps to break free, you probably never will. That’s a lot of money you’ll hand over to a partner hardly worth your time.
If you need more convincing, our complimentary report, Breaking Out of the PPO Prison, is available to any dentist serious about removing insurance from their life. Grab it now and stop handing your wealth over to a partner who doesn’t have your best interests in mind.