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Senate Co-Sponsorship Memoranda
Senate of Pennsylvania
Session of 2019 - 2020
Regular Session
MEMORANDUM
| Posted: | January 29, 2019 11:41 AM |
|---|---|
| From: | Senator Mike Regan |
| To: | All Senate members |
| Subject: | Assignment of Dental Benefits |
| In the near future I plan to reintroduce Senate Bill 373, sponsored last session by Senator John Eichelberger, directing insurers to assign a patient’s benefits to the dentist of their choice, known as assignment of benefits. This legislation would eliminate financial and administrative burdens for both patients and dentists and would ensure that benefit plans are treated as purchased products belonging to the patient. Assignment of benefits would allow a patient to authorize payment of insurance benefits directly to the dentist in accordance with the provisions of their insurance policy. Without assignment of benefits, patients may be required to pay the full cost of dental services upfront, which can be quite cost prohibitive. Patients residing in rural areas are placed at a further disadvantage as there may only be a handful of dentists who are in-network, resulting in the patient having to incur more traveling time and expense to seek treatment from an in-network provider. When patients choose to forgo treatment of a dental issue due to any of these factors, the result can be additional health problems, a trip to the ER, and ultimately, higher costs in the long run. Additionally, dentists who choose not to require advanced payment may never be paid for services rendered. Assignment of benefits remedies this and thus improves access to care. Twenty-two other states have enacted similar legislation, which gives patients the right to choose their providers based on their preference, even if the dentist does not participate within the patient’s insurance plan. Representative Saylor will be reintroducing a companion bill in the House. Co-sponsors of SB373: ALLOWAY, ARGALL, AUMENT, BLAKE, BOSCOLA, BROOKS, BROWNE, COSTA, EICHELBERGER, GREENLEAF, HUTCHINSON, KILLION, McGARRIGLE, McILHINNEY, MENSCH, RAFFERTY, REGAN, RESCHENTHALER, SCAVELLO, STEFANO, VOGEL, K. WARD |