Easily access the insurance plan details that will help take the guesswork out of patient coverage.
Updated 10/20/21
With the introduction of Dentrix G7.4, there have been some exciting changes with how you enter and view patient insurance information. I believe these changes are going to be such a positive improvement for all offices. If you haven’t had an opportunity to upgrade to Dentrix G7.4 or higher, or had an opportunity to learn about the changes, let me tell you what you’re missing!
There’s a new Dental Insurance Benefits and Coverage window (which you get to by double-clicking a patient’s Insurance block in the Family File and then clicking the Benefits/Coverage button), where all of a patient’s insurance information is consolidated into a single location. This makes it easier for your team to navigate without having to hunt for the information they need.
A feature that I’m especially excited about is visible when you first access this window. When the Dental Insurance Benefits and Coverage window opens, it defaults to show the information on the Insurance Plan tab.
Here you have the option to enter a waiting period, maximum age for dependents, a missing tooth clause, and whether crowns and bridges are paid on prep date or seat date. While this information is not included in patient estimates, Dentrix will provide you with a pop-up warning when you’re scheduling an appointment that conflicts with the insurance details you’ve entered.
This is such an exciting improvement because in previous versions of Dentrix, this information would either be entered into the Insurance Plan Notes or a scanned insurance breakdown in the Document Center. The struggle with that was getting your team to read those notes before scheduling an appointment. Once you have entered that information in Dentrix, and with the new insurance warnings, this will no longer be an issue.
Another very exciting feature is the information that can be entered in the Exceptions tab.
This is a designated area for you to enter frequency limitations and age limits. There is an option to insert a template or create your own. I think this is an awesome improvement to the Insurance window in Dentrix, because in previous versions of Dentrix there wasn’t a specific area to keep track of this information. Now it will be easy to view insurance plan details and explain them to your patients when presenting a treatment plan and scheduling appointments.
Another great feature is that this insurance information is accessible from the Family File, the Treatment Planner, and the Appointment Information dialog box. This makes it very convenient for your team to reference this information while creating a treatment plan or when scheduling an appointment.
There are also new insurance icons that appear in the Family File, Treatment Planner, and Appointment Information dialog box that indicate if exceptions have been entered for a patient’s plan, if there’s a missing tooth clause, and/or if there are insurance plan notes.
Icons shown in Family File: Insurance Plan Details, Insurance Note, Missing Tooth Clause
Icons shown in Treatment Planner: Insurance Plan Details, Exceptions, Missing Tooth Clause
Icons shown in Appointment Information: Insurance Plan Details, Exceptions, Missing Tooth Clause
The icons make it easy to see what type of insurance information has been entered into Dentrix and serve as a quick reference for your team to know what type of insurance details have been entered for the plan and may need a quick review.
Having insurance warnings for procedures that conflict with the patient’s insurance plan, having a designated area to enter plan details like frequencies and limitations, and having this information easily accessible for several modules in Dentrix are going to make the way your office deals with insurance so much easier. The new details and icons will also help to take the guess work out of insurance plans and allow your office to provide your patients with more accurate information and treatment estimates.
Learn More
To learn more about the features in Dentrix G7.4, watch the Dentrix G7.4 New Features webinar on-demand recording.
You can also get additional information here:
By Charlotte Skaggs
Certified Dentrix Trainer and The Dentrix Office Manager columnist
Charlotte Skaggs is the founder of Vector Dental Consulting LLC, a practice management firm focused on taking offices to the next level. Charlotte co-owned and managed a successful dental practice with her husband for 17 years. She has a unique approach to consulting based on the perspective of a practice owner. Charlotte has been using Dentrix for over 20 years and is a certified Dentrix trainer. Contact Charlotte at vectordentalconsulting@gmail.com.
