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Articles
Brokers Give Delta Dental High Ratings in Survey
Patients Can Download, Print ID Cards
Golf Outing Results Announced
2005 Annual Report Published
Staff Spotlight: E.J. Sebelle
Online Consultant News Delivers More Info to Your
Desktop
Nationwide Delta Dental System Posts 26th Consecutive Year of
Growth
Importance of Dental Visits Increases with Understanding of
Greater Connections between Oral, Overall Health
Delta Dental this
year launched our first Broker Survey to learn more about our
brokers, find out how we compare to our competitors, and learn
what brokers value most from dental benefits insurers.
Delta Dental ranked
highest in broker satisfaction among nine major dental
carriers, according to the survey. This was true for all group
sizes. More than 9 out of 10 brokers are satisfied to very
satisfied with Delta Dental overall. Delta Dental scored more
than 20 percentage points higher than the next highest
competitor.
Brokers gave us high
marks on most attributes. Areas where we scored the highest
were:
- Knowledge of their
Delta Dental account executive
- Implementation of
new groups
- Ability to obtain
accurate rates
- Reputation
- Claims processing
- Ease of program
administration
- Ability to resolve
problems
- Member and client
satisfaction
- Claims processing
- Ability to locate
a network dentist
Surveys were e-mailed
to nearly 300 brokers in New Jersey and Connecticut. More than
100 brokers responded.
Plans are underway to
make this an annual survey. If you were not contacted for the
2006 survey and want to take part in future surveys, please
send your contact information, including e-mail address, to
dbelle@deltadentalnj.com.
Delta Dental doesn’t
require ID cards, and many employers do not issue them.
However, many dental offices ask for ID cards anyway. Many
members told us they wanted the option of getting ID cards if
they needed them.
We listened. Delta
Dental recently launched online ID cards for members. This
enables them to print ID cards as often as they need.
Members can access
their online ID card through Benefits Connection, the secure
area of our Web site where they can also obtain detailed
information about their dental benefits. They just need to
click the icon on the top left of the screen after registering
for Benefits Connection. The card is then presented to them
for printing. The ID card includes their name, group number
and the Delta Dental program in which they are enrolled.
This service will be
available to all members except those enrolled in Delta Dental
Patient Direct and DeltaCare. DeltaCare members needing
replacement cards should call DeltaCare Customer Service at
(800) 722-3524.
The Sixteenth Annual
Delta Dental Classic raised $53,000 for Special Olympics New
Jersey (SONJ). The Classic took place in June at Fiddler’s
Elbow Country Club in Bedminster, New Jersey.
Over the past 16 years the Delta Dental Classic has raised
more than $553,000 for SONJ.
SONJ helps those with mental disabilities become physically
fit, productive, and respected members of society through
sports training and competition.
Special thanks to all of our participants and sponsors.
Delta Dental’s 2005
Annual Report, called “Ordinary People Doing Extraordinary
Things,” highlights many of the community service projects
supported by Delta Dental and our employees. It also
highlights our business achievements. In 2005 we:
- Retained 95% of
our customers.
- Processed a record
2.8 million claims for $418 million.
- Added coverage for
brush biopsy, a procedure that helps detect early stages of
oral cancer.
- Launched a dental
access plan called Delta Dental Patient Direct for uninsured
residents of New Jersey.
To order your free
copy of Delta Dental’s 2005 Annual Report, visit our Web site
at www.deltadentalnj.com. Click “Our Company” on the
left navigation bar. Then click “Annual Report.”
E.J. Sebelle joined
Delta Dental even before graduating from Montclair State
University in 1999. He remembers thinking, “It’s a great place
to start my career.”
It’s a good place to
advance it, too. E.J. was recently promoted to Market Research
Analyst, a new position for Delta Dental.
His job includes
analyzing competitive intelligence about other dental benefits
carriers. He looks at how other dental networks and plan
designs compare to Delta Dental’s.
“DDPA [Delta Dental
Plans Association] does this on a national level,” E.J.
explains. “I focus on the New Jersey and Connecticut
marketplace.”
E.J. is a member of
the Society of Competitive Intelligence Professionals. He
works with Mark Nadeau, vice president, Marketing, and John
Gumkowski, director, Sales and Marketing, to analyze the New
Jersey and Connecticut markets and research market potential
in each state.
“I’m very excited
about this opportunity to help our company grow,” says E.J.
If you have e-mail,
you can subscribe to Delta Dental’s Consultant News.
Consultant News
is a free e-mail newsletter Delta Dental periodically
sends to brokers and consultants who subscribe. It’s in
addition to Broker News, which Delta Dental prints and
mails free to brokers twice a year.
Consultant News
keeps you up to date about our products and services.
Recent articles covered everything from national trends in
dental benefits coverage to how our Web site can simplify work
for you and your clients.
If you would like to
subscribe to Consultant News, please visit our Web site
at www.deltadentalnj.com, click “Brokers” and enter your
e-mail address in the “Consultant News” subscription box. You
may unsubscribe to Consultant News at any time.
If you ever have comments about Consultant News, or
have a question or topic that you want to see covered, please
contact our editor at dbelle@deltadentalnj.com.
Delta Dental does not sell, rent, or disclose e-mail addresses
to third parties. Therefore, you will not receive unsolicited
e-mail ("spam") as a result of subscribing to Consultant
News.
The nationwide Delta
Dental system posted its 26th consecutive year of
financial gains and member growth in 2005, serving one million
more dental-benefits members than in the previous year.
In 2005, the Delta Dental system:
- Posted
approximately $12 billion in premium revenue during fiscal
year 2005, the system’s 26th consecutive year of
financial gains.
- Served 47 million
members, or more than one-quarter of the estimated 159
million Americans with dental insurance.
- Saved groups $4.4
billion through cost-control activities. This is $500
million more in savings over the previous year.
- Processed more
than 69 million claims – nearly 1.3 million every week –
with an accuracy rate of 99%.
In addition, the
network of Delta Dental Premier dentists is the country’s most
extensive, with approximately 118,000 dentists – more than
twice the amount of any competitor’s PPO network. Also, more
than 81,000 groups across the nation sponsored dental benefits
through the Delta Dental system.
“It’s gratifying to
see such growth in the number of members, the size of our
networks and the savings resulting from our cost management
strategies,” said Tom Dolatowski, vice president of marketing
for Delta Dental Plans Association. “These numbers show that
we’re making great progress in bringing affordable care to
more people.”
Heading to the
dentist’s office? Your visit may double as a private health
investigation.
As research continues
to uncover links between the health of our mouths and the rest
of our bodies, regular visits to the dental office are
becoming all the more important.
“Routine dental
visits can uncover a number of things about our health, and
put us on the path to preventing and managing bigger health
issues for ourselves and our families,” says Dr. Scott
Navarro, dental director, Delta Dental of New Jersey.
Here are some
diseases and the clues they leave in our mouths for oral
health professionals to discover.
Upper respiratory
disorders. Viral infections in the lungs of sufferers can
produce lesions or sores inside their mouths.
Acid Reflux and
Hiatal Hernia. Sufferers who repeatedly burp bile into
their mouths can experience eroded tooth enamel, sensitive
teeth and a bitter taste in their mouths.
Diabetes.
Clues left in the mouths of diabetics include inflammation,
infections, dry mouth, burning tongue, persistent gingivitis,
and multiple lesions. Even patients who know they have
diabetes may require special care. They may be taking
medications that inhibit their ability to produce saliva, an
important ally in the fight against cavities and gum disease.
Kidney failure.
Dentists can also find evidence of kidney failure. Retarded
tooth development in children, dry mouth, odor, metallic
taste, ulcers on the tongues and gums in adults may lead the
dentist to suggest a visit to a medical doctor to check for
properly functioning kidneys.
Anemia. Some
of the earliest signs of anemia, where our bodies don’t
produce enough oxygen-carrying red blood cells, are oral.
These signs include burning, fiery red tongue, inflamed mucous
membranes and difficulty swallowing.
Osteoporosis.
As part of standard first visits, dentists and their staff
take x-rays of the mouth area to spot oral health problems,
typically no more serious than cavities. However, in some
cases these x-rays show jawbones that have eroded and become
thinner, a symptom of osteoporosis.
So what does this
potential for finding other conditions mean for people heading
to the dentist?
For dentists, the
emphasis remains on protecting and promoting oral health. But
as part of that commitment, patients are finding their initial
and follow-up exams to cover health topics outside their
mouths. Dental professionals often inquire about medical
history, discuss medications the patients are taking, and may
measure vital signs. All of this is a part of diagnosing the
oral health of patients and developing treatment plans.
“There are many
factors that contribute to the state of our oral health and
our bodies. Patients can expect the contemporary dental
professional to take a systematic approach to protecting and
promoting their oral health. That’s what works best,” says Dr.
Navarro. |
