FOR YOUR INFORMATION:
FACTS YOU SHOULD KNOW
Gloves: The use
of powdered gloves was banned under a December 2016 final ruling by the Food
and Drug Administration (FDA) that took effect on January 18, 2017. The rule
references patient examination gloves, absorbable powder used to lubricate
surgeons’ gloves, and pre-powdered surgeons’ gloves. Furthermore, non-powdered
gloves must have no more than trace amounts of powder which might occur during
the manufacturing process. The rule states that powdered gloves “pose an
unreasonable and substantial risk of illness or injury to health care
providers, patients, and other individuals who are exposed to them, which
cannot be corrected through new or updating labeling.” For news of problems or
restrictions with gloves and other oral care products, go to ADA.org/Safety
Alerts.
Dental Earnings: Dentists’
earnings have stabilized after several years of decline. The peak average net
income for general practitioners was $219,638 in 2005. Reduced reimbursement
rates from managed care companies, the “Great Recession of 2009-2010” which
negatively affected dental earnings, the increased number of dental
practitioners, and the resulting reduction in “busyness” have been blamed for
the decade-long income decline. Although average net incomes have not recovered
to the 2005 peak, 2015 (the last year for which total figures are available)
showed average annual net income of $179,960 for general practitioners and
$320,460 for specialists. Practice-owner GPs averaged $195,200. Increased
busyness has been reported for 2015 and into 2016, but researchers are still
unsure if the dental economy is actually on its way back to the peaks in the
early 2000s or if a lower net income will be the new norm.
Dental Care
Expenditures: According to researchers at the ADA’s Health Policy
Institute, 2015 expenditures on dental care accounted for 3.7% of overall
national health expenditures. Total dental care expenditures were $113,321
billion in 2013; $114 billion in 2014; and #117.5 billion in 2015,
demonstrating an increase from several years of flat spending that began in
2009-2010. Sources of the increase in spending on dental care include a slight
increase in care covered by private dental insurance and a more significant
expansion of patients whose dental care is paid by Medicaid. (In my opinion,
Medicaid expansion means more people receive dental coverage, but in most states,
unfortunately, the reimbursement rates to dentists have not increased
sufficiently to cover the increased costs of providing the care to more
Medicaid-covered patients. It is thus a real quandary for practitioners.)
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