Insurance Untangled

When a dental practice grows beyond one location, the things that used to live in your head suddenly need systems, dashboards, and clean data behind them. Without that foundation, growth slows, problems hide longer, and decisions get made on instinct instead of insight.

In this episode of the Insurance Untangled Podcast, host Don Adeesha sits down with Vincent Cardillo, founder of Mava Dental Advisors and a 25+ year veteran in scaling dental service organizations. Vincent led one group to #14 on the Inc. 500 list with 12,896% growth, and today he provides outsourced C-suite services to emerging dental groups through Mava and their proprietary performance platform, Pronto.

Don and Vincent unpack what actually changes when a single practice becomes a group, why most owners struggle with the same five gaps (org chart, accountability, SOPs, training, and numbers), and how to coach yourself out of the "I'll just do it myself" trap. Vincent also breaks down the four KPI buckets every group should be tracking — financial, operational, clinical, and culture — and shares a powerful insight: focusing on just two metrics (missed calls and percentage of new patient calls booked) can grow your new patient count by 20% in three months without spending another dollar on marketing.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• The five biggest operational gaps owners hit when scaling from one to multiple locations
• Why promoting your most loyal team member into management can backfire — and how to handle it
• How to have the honest "what do you really want?" conversation with long-tenured staff
• The four KPI buckets every dental group should track (financial, operational, clinical, culture)
• The two metrics that can lift new patient numbers 20% in 90 days
• Why benchmarks matter more than dashboards
• How data-driven groups build the confidence to open practice #2

In this episode of Insurance Untangled, hosts Ben Tuinei and Tessina Bullock dive into one of the most overlooked revenue opportunities for dental practices: PPO fee negotiations.

Many practices assume insurance reimbursements are fixed, but Ben and Tessina explain why that is not always the case. They discuss why practices often avoid negotiations, how to prepare before approaching insurance companies, and what data matters most when evaluating PPO relationships.

You'll learn why knowing your office fees, tracking write-offs, understanding plan profitability, and building leverage are essential steps toward improving reimbursements. Even small fee increases can create a major financial impact over time, especially for practices that remain in-network.

This episode is a practical, straight-to-the-point conversation for dental teams looking to take more control of their insurance relationships and stop leaving revenue on the table.

Topics covered include:

• Why many dental practices delay or avoid PPO negotiations
• Whether insurance companies really negotiate fees
• How to prepare your data before starting the negotiation process
• The importance of tracking write-offs and plan profitability
• Why small reimbursement increases can make a big difference
• Key takeaways for practices ready to start negotiating

For more resources, visit Insuranceuntangled.com

In this episode, Ben Tuinei and Naren Arulrajah uncover why doing more—more ads, more PPOs, more hustle—often leads to burnout and lower profitability. Learn how to identify what's actually holding your practice back, and how to solve the right problems using data, call tracking, and smarter marketing and insurance participation. Real stories, practical tips, and a powerful reminder: less is more when done right.

In this episode, Ben Tuinei and Naren Arulrajah talk about why so many dentists feel stuck with busy but unproductive schedules. They explain how the real problem often starts with ignoring marketing until it's too late—and how depending on insurance just makes things worse.

You'll learn how to take control by attracting the right patients, building long-term marketing habits, and setting smart goals. If you're ready to stress less and gain more freedom, this episode will show you where to start.

In this episode, Ben Tunei and Naren Arulrajah break down what Google truly wants from your dental website in 2026. They explore how Google's AI-first approach is reshaping search, why beautiful websites alone won't cut it, and how E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trust), mobile performance, and helpful, trustworthy content are now essential for ranking. Learn what it takes to stand out online and attract more of the right patients to your practice.

In this episode, Ben Tuinei and Naren Arulrajah dive into one of the most overlooked threats facing dental practices today: the long-term damage caused by the wrong kind of marketing. Through relatable stories, including a surprising tale about a broken hard drive, Ben and Naren reveal how DIY marketing, copied tactics, and "doing something just to be busy" can quietly sabotage a practice's growth. From slow websites and poor SEO to discount-driven ads that attract the wrong patients, this episode uncovers the invisible leaks that hurt practices without dentists ever realizing it.

What's the secret to keeping patients for life? In this episode, Naren Arulrajah and Ben Tuinei unpack how trust, empathy, and consistency, not gimmicks or discounts, are the real keys to patient loyalty. They dive into how emotional connections, marketing beyond the chair, and strong internal team culture drive long-term retention. Whether you're overwhelmed by insurance or struggling with patient turnover, this episode gives you practical, proven strategies to build lasting relationships and take back control of your practice's growth.

In this episode of Insurance Untangled, Ben Tuinei is joined once again by insurance expert Tessina Bullock. Together, they dive into one of the most frustrating issues dental teams face today — the rising culture of insurance claim denials.

From scaling and root planing (SRP) denials to unfair bundling of buildups and other procedures, Ben and Tessina break down what's really happening and why so many valid claims are getting rejected. They also share smart ways to appeal denials, how to hold insurance companies accountable, and when to report trends to the ADA and your insurance commissioner.

If your team is stressed, wasting hours on appeals, or constantly underpaid, this episode offers powerful insights and actionable tips to help you push back and get paid what you've earned.

In this episode of the Insurance Untangled Podcast, Naren Arulrajah and Ben Tuinei dive into one of the biggest challenges in dentistry: the feeling of being trapped by PPOs. They discuss the emotional and financial toll of insurance dependence, why many dentists fear leaving PPO networks, and practical strategies to regain control and profitability. You'll hear real examples, including a dentist who doubled her income while working fewer days, and actionable insights into how SEO, Google reviews, and smart marketing can help you build a fee-for-service practice that thrives without insurance constraints.

In this powerful episode of the Insurance Untangled Podcast, co-hosts Ben Tuinei and Naren Arulrajah break down what it really means to have a PPO exit strategy. If you're a dentist feeling stuck with shrinking reimbursements and rising administrative work from insurance companies, this episode is for you. Ben and Naren walk through the steps to evaluate which PPO plans are helping or hurting your bottom line and share how marketing can replace low-value patients with ones who value your care and pay full fees. If you've been thinking about cutting ties with insurance—or just want to stop losing money on low-paying plans—this episode gives you the roadmap to start that journey.