The Dental Truth Project

Fake Codes, Hidden Fraud & The Accounting Nightmare (E.20)

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The Membership Plan Trap: Why 88% of Your Cash Patients Disappear (And How Bad Accounting Is Killing Your Practice)

Paul Lowry, CEO of Dental Menu, reveals the brutal truth about dental membership plans: Most practices are accidentally running discount Groupons instead of sustainable membership programs - farming PPO patients while hunting cash pay, watching 88% of uninsured patients vanish within 5 years, and unknowingly creating accounting disasters that pit hygienists against the plan and destroy practice valuations.


Key Revelations:
The Discount Plan Death Spiral

  • Practices create fake procedure codes (999) and adjustment codes, making daily production never match collections
  • Study of 250,000 new patients proves: Without prepaid benefits, patients delay until pain, then disappear out the back door
  • Most "membership plans" are actually annual Groupons that patients buy to close treatment, then abandon
  • Write-offs disguise fraud: Office managers put friends/family on plans, and no one catches it


    • 💡 The "Ask Ken" Question:
    "What's one way to improve EBITDA fast without cutting staff?"

    Ken's answer: Renegotiate your supply vendors. Prices and relationships change regularly - there's usually 5-10% savings available if you get organized with the right vendor. It won't be a huge EBITDA boost, but it's the fastest move that doesn't require staffing changes.


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    The Dental Truth ProjectBy The Dental Truth Project