DrBicuspid.com Practice Management Insider

Dear Practice Management Insider,

In this edition's Insider Exclusive, we got the scoop on the pros and cons of working in corporate dentistry from a dentist who has worked in both private practice and for a dental service organization (DSO).

DSOs offer dentists relief from the burdens of solo practices while providing generous salaries, administrative support, and regular work schedules. But there can be downsides -- click here to find out what you should know before signing up with a dental chain.

Also in the Practice Management Community, qualified retirement plans can have a measurable impact on dentists' taxes. Read how the plans reduce both taxable and adjusted gross income, minimizing the impact of new tax rates.

Meanwhile, dentists of all ages can benefit personally and professionally by becoming actively involved in organized dentistry -- especially when they are establishing a practice. Find out how such involvement enhanced the careers and lives of two dentists.

In other news, academics, community health clinic directors, and a social worker told a U.S. Senate subcommittee that the nation's dental crisis is causing pain and suffering to millions of children and adults while wasting millions of dollars as underserved people turn to hospital emergency rooms. Read how Sen. Bernard Sanders' Comprehensive Dental Reform Act of 2013 aims to expand dental coverage.

And did you know that New York's JFK and LaGuardia airports have a resident dentist? Robert Trager, DDS, has a million stories about the patients he's treated over the years, almost as many as the throngs of passengers, airport workers, and illegal immigrants that stream through the city's bustling airports. Click here to read about his patients, including Mujahedeen fighters wearing beards and turbans, illegal immigrants from all over the world trying to gain entry into the U.S., drug dealers, and prostitutes.

For other big news in the community, check out these stories:

• An Arkansas orthodontist was summoned before state examiners to defend his offering of prophylaxes, saying it is within the realm of his specialty and not a violation of the state's Dental Practice Act. Click here to read what prompted the inquiry.
• An insurance broker is suing Delta Dental of Illinois for cutting the broker out of the commission on a policy for the Chicago police union. Read more about the suit, which comes as insurers scramble to protect their turf, fearing that state health insurance exchanges, which open next week, will hurt their business.
• Dental professionals need to think outside the oral cavity. That was the message at the recent meeting of the Institute for Oral Health conference in Washington, DC. Click here for details.
• New York dental hygienists can now work in certain facilities under collaborative agreements with dentists, thanks to a new law.
• The California Dental Association and several dentists have filed a demand for binding arbitration after Delta Dental of California informed providers of changes to key provisions in their agreements. Click here for details.
• Oklahoma health officials have connected one case of hepatitis C to a Tulsa oral surgeon who is accused of exposing thousands of patients to blood-borne viruses at his practices. Read about the infection scandal and the class-action lawsuit that has been filed by seven former patients.
• Every morning, Monday through Friday, Shirley Gutkowski, RDH, BSDH, gets to do something she loves: talk on the radio. Click here to read about her online show that provides health information specific to dentistry.

Finally, read about Senior Mobile Dental, a nonprofit organization that delivers dental services to underserved elderly patients run by Michelle Noblet-Vacha, RDH, in the latest installment in our Dental Heroes series.