Week in Review: Dental spending on the rise | Calif. bill battles teledentistry | Turning around a failing practice

Dear DrBicuspid Member,

Are you ready for some good news to start your weekend? The ADA's Health Policy Institute (HPI) shared a great nugget of knowledge this week that should put a smile on your face.

U.S. dental spending reached an all-time high of $136 billion in 2018, representing 3.7% of total health spending in the country, according to a new report from the HPI. Patients are spending more than ever before, so what do those numbers look like for your practice? Now might be a great time to look at your practice's year-over-year stats and see if your business is growing as well.

Speaking of business and knowing your numbers, Dr. Roger P. Levin always offers excellent advice in his articles, and this week was no different with his look at eight steps to help turn around a failing practice.

In California, the recent introduction of the Dental Practice Act (AB 1998) is taking a deeper stab at controlling companies that offer teledentistry services, such as SmileDirectClub. The new bill would require dentists to conduct in-person visits with patients before they receive any services remotely.

May I suggest a fun and compelling listen for your weekend? My podcast with the marketing executives at Ultradent provides a story of everything that can go right and wrong with dropping a curing light from 100,000 feet in the air back to earth. Trust me, this is a story you have to hear (and read) to believe, and I think it's worth 30 minutes of your time.

Also, if you have some time this weekend or coming week, why not test your clinical skills with our Dental Exam? Built as a free study tool that features selections of diagnostic images and sample questions that are specifically designed to help dental students study for their reviews, we have also found established dentists and team members love testing their own knowledge. With new questions just added, now is the perfect time to up your brain game.

Wishing you a great and relaxing weekend!