FYI

Dear Delta Dental participating dentists,

It’s my pleasure to write to you as the new Chief Executive Officer and President of Delta Dental.

First, allow me to thank you for being a part of our provider network. The work you do to deliver quality oral health care to patients has never been more critical, and we’re proud to partner with you and your teams.

As I prepared to step into my role, I reflected on our company’s history and the opportunities that lie ahead. Our purpose as an organization is to improve health by providing access to quality care. We know that access to care is more than providing a pathway for patients to see dentists – it’s about creating a connected experience, in partnership with you, to support patients in managing all aspects of their oral health. You are critical partners to deliver on that purpose and we can’t do it without you.

We have an incredible opportunity to think about the evolving needs of patients and how they expect to experience quality care. And while we’ll start with the millions of enrollees we currently serve, our vision includes making quality oral care available to all Americans. It’s a lofty ambition – one that will require many stakeholders coming together with the shared goal of increasing access to care.

One example of how we’re delivering on our purpose includes expanding our focus on senior oral health. By 2030, one in five Americans will be age 65 or older¹. Currently, more than half of older adults don’t have dental benefit coverage² and one in three can’t afford to see the dentist regularly³. As a result, we’ve made oral health care for older adults one of our corporate priorities. This includes offering new products; identifying and addressing the socioeconomic and systemic causes of poor oral health among older adults with community-based partners, like Howard University’s College of Dentistry, among others; as well as lobbying for federal changes to support seniors through independent purchase efforts.

We’re also proud to announce a collaboration with the American Heart Association. Still in its early stages, the Healthy Smiles, Healthy Hearts™ initiative will help increase awareness of the connection between oral health and cardiovascular health by underscoring the vital role that routine dental visits and proper oral care play in overall health. These are just a couple of the examples of work underway.

So, what can you expect from me? You can expect an increased focus on partnership and listening. I like to tell my colleagues at Delta Dental that I’ll share what I know and how I’m thinking. And I plan to extend that same thinking to our providers. One way we’re listening is through our Provider Advisory Council, which not only collects feedback from a representative population of providers, but it will also be a forum for us to partner and shape our approach to expanding access to care.

We continue to invest in our partnership, and you can find a number of improvements highlighted below. I wish you continued success in your practice, and I look forward to building the future of oral health care together.

Sincerely,
Sarah Chavarria
Chief Executive Officer and President 
Delta Dental of California and affiliates

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Strengthening Provider Partnership in 2024
We're excited to share some of the improvements we're making with you in mind, such as:
 

1. Growing and evolving our listening programs, so that we can hear and act on your feedback. If you’d like to know more about joining the Provider Advisory Council to help shape the future of oral care, please visit us online or contact us at pac@delta.org.
2. Eliminating the need to submit your recredentialing documents on paper and through the mail by digitizing our recredentialing process. Your feedback has been shaping recredentialing in Provider Tools. It will be a much easier and faster process for you and your staff starting with a phased roll out in 2024.
3. Improving eligibility and benefits functions in Provider Tools as a direct result of feedback and testing we learned in focus groups with network providers.
4. Continuing to simplify and modernize our fee structure using a state-by-state approach to better align our network fees with the market throughout 2024. 
5. Expanding our Medicare Advantage partnerships. Historically, older adults have not had access to dental benefits under Medicare. With our Medicare Advantage plan partnerships, members receive supplemental dental benefits when they purchase their Medicare Advantage medical plan. This enables us to create a larger patient base for dentists and improve the quality of health for seniors. If you are interested in expanding your patient base to include Medicare Advantage network participation, please email us at providerconcierge@delta.org. 
6. Optimizing our communications to be streamlined and efficient to you and your staff, including our monthly FYI Newsletter which will take your recent feedback and tailor its content to your needs.
    

If you have any questions, our Provider Concierge team is available by phone between 7 am and  5 pm PT at 800-592-0156 or by email at providerconcierge@delta.org.

¹  https://www.census.gov/content/dam/Census/library/publications/2020/demo/p25-1144.pdf
² https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2809204
³ 2023 survey commissioned by Delta Dental to American adults 55+