A growing number of dental offices across the country are charging patients an 'infection control fee' amid the coronavirus pandemic.
For example, United Concordia Dental of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, agreed to pay dentists $10 per patient per visit in May and June to offset their protective equipment expenses for all fully insured clients. The company has more than 9 million members nationwide.
Desai, whose wife, Viraj, a dentist, founded the dental chain, said the extra money will help the practice survive."We are not making money off this," he said."This is just to sustain us so we are not bleeding out cash." He estimates that the offices are working at only half capacity since they reopened in mid-May. In weighing how to handle the extra costs, Swish was reluctant to cut employees' wages, he said."Everyone is trying to figure this out," he added.Kim Hartlage, office manager of Klein Dental Group in Louisville, Kentucky, said insurers recommended that the office add an infection control fee. The insurers balked at raising their reimbursement rates.
Tamar Lasky, an epidemiologist, said she likes her dentist in Owings Mills, Maryland, and was glad that the office was communicating the many precautions it was taking to prevent the. But she said she was stunned when she was informed by email that a $15"infection control charge" would be added to her bill.
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