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Articles
Delta Dental Elects New Chairman, Board
Members
Same-Day Dentist Referrals Now Available
VanBrunt Elected Chairman of DeltaUSA
Board of Directors
Rain Dampens Golf Classic, But Not Generosity
More Information Available Via Automated Voice
Response Unit
New Customer Service Agents Undergo 6-Week
Boot Camp
Patient Obligations Regarding Up Front Payments
You Know Where You Live, But Do We?
Student Verification Time
Delta Dental Elects New Chairman,
Board Members
Gerald A. Sydell, D.D.S., was recently elected Chairman
of the Board of Delta Dental Plan of New Jersey,
Inc. Dr. Carl Chaityn, our previous Chairman, will
remain an active member on the Delta Dental Board
of Trustees. The Board also elected Ronald Deblinger,
D.M.D., Vice Chairman of the Board, and George McLaughlin,
D.M.D., Trustee.
Dr. Sydell, of Watchung, NJ, served as vice chairman
of Delta Dental's Board of Trustees in 1998 and has
been a board member since 1980. Currently, he serves
on our Executive Committee and Nominating Committee.
Dr. Sydell also serves as Vice Chairman of the Delta
Dental Endowment Association of New Jersey, Inc.
He has practiced dentistry in Cranford, NJ, for more
than 40 years.
Dr. Sydell received his doctorate in dental surgery
from Temple University and advanced education in
orthodontics from New York University. He is past
president of the Union County Dental Society, and
served as a trustee of the New Jersey Dental Association
and delegate to the American Dental Association.
In addition, Dr. Sydell is a member of the New Jersey
Medicaid Drug Utilization Review Board. He received
the Union County Dental Society's President's Award
and the New Jersey Dental Association's Service Award.
He has been elected to Fellowship in the American
College of Dentists and the International College
of Dentists.
Dr. Deblinger, of Montvale, NJ, has been a member
of Delta Dental's Board of Trustees since 1988. Currently,
he serves on our Contracts and Fees Committee, Dental
Advisory and Policy Committee, and Audit Committee.
He has been in private practice for 22 years in Clifton,
NJ, and specializes in endodontics. After graduating
from Alfred University with a bachelor's degree,
Dr. Deblinger received his dental education at the
University of Pennsylvania, where he also received
his specialty degree in endodontics. He is past president
of the Passaic County Dental Society; alternate trustee
for the New Jersey Dental Association; alternate
delegate for the American Dental Association; past
president of the New Jersey Association of Endodontics;
treasurer of the Research and Education Foundation
of the American Association of Endodontics; fellow
of the American College of Dentists; and fellow of
the International College of Dentists. He is past
member of the Board of Directors of the American
Association of Endodontics.
Active in his community as well, Dr. Deblinger served
as president of the Montvale Athletic League, and
has been involved in various other community activities.
Dr. McLaughlin, of New Brunswick, NJ, who has just
been named to Delta Dental's Dental Advisory and
Policy Committee, maintains a practice in general
dentistry in New Brunswick. He serves as Clinical
Associate Professor in the Department of General
Dentistry and Community Health, University of Medicine
and Dentistry of New Jersey. A graduate of the University
of Medicine and Dentistry-New Jersey Dental School,
Dr. McLaughlin is president of the New Jersey Dental
School Academic Assembly, where he is responsible
for the day-to-day operations of the Office of Minority
Affairs. He is the current dental school representative
to the Affirmative Action Council, which reports
directly to the UMDNJ Board of Trustees. He is past
president of two statewide dental organizations:
Commonwealth Dental Society of New Jersey, and the
New Jersey Academy of General Dentistry. In addition,
he currently chairs the New Jersey Dental Association
Council on Dental Education, the New Jersey Academy
of General Dentistry Committee on Constitution and
Bylaws and, in his community, serves on the Constitution
and Bylaws Committee and Board of Trustees of the
First Baptist Church of Lincoln Gardens in Somerset,
NJ.
Same-Day Dentist Referrals
Now Available
Delta Dental recently installed new software that
enables Customer Service agents to provide callers
with immediate information about dentists in their
area.
While callers are still on the phone, Customer Service
agents can instantly access a database that allows
them to identify participating dentists based on
zip codes, and provide information such as the dentists'
addresses, phone numbers and areas of specialty.
(This functionality also exists on our web site at
www.deltadentalnj.com.) Agents will soon be able
to fax the information from his or her desktop to
the caller's fax machine.
Watch for news about additional enhancements to
our dental referral system, which we hope to announce
shortly.
While callers are still on the phone, Customer
Service agents can instantly access a database that
allows them to identify participating dentists based
on zip codes, and provide information such as the
dentists' addresses, phone numbers and areas of specialty.
VanBrunt Elected Chairman
of DeltaUSA Board of Directors
Walter VanBrunt, president and CEO of Delta Dental
Plan of New Jersey, Inc., was recently elected Chairman
of the Board of Directors of DeltaUSA. He will serve
a two-year term from June 1, 1999 to August 31, 2001.
Mr. VanBrunt joined Delta Dental Plan of New Jersey
in 1993 as executive vice president and president
of Delta Dental's subsidiary, Flagship Health Systems.
He became president and CEO in January 1998. His
28 years in the insurance industry includes service
as second vice president of Lincoln National Insurance
Company, where he directed the company's Eastern
Region Group Operations Center.
A graduate of Virginia Tech with a bachelor of science
degree in business administration and management,
Mr. VanBrunt serves on the Board of Directors for
Delta Dental Plans Association (DDPA)
and DeltaUSA. He also serves on the Board of the
Delta Dental Endowment Association of New Jersey.
DeltaUSA is the national accounts business development
subsidiary of the Delta Dental Plans Association.
Rain Dampens Golf Classic,
But Not Generosity
Thunder, lightning and torrential rains forced the
cancellation of the ninth annual Delta Dental Classic
on May 24. But disappointed golfers focused on the
reason behind the event: to raise funds for the Special
Olympics New Jersey.
Despite being unable to play, golfers and sponsors
at this year's golf-less Classic raised $50,000 for
Special Olympics programs. To date, we have raised
$225,000 for Special Olympics from our annual event.
Through the kindness of Cherry Valley Country Club,
all golfers will receive a voucher for lunch and
a round of golf, to be used at their convenience.
Special thanks to all our participating groups,
including C.R Bard, Summit Bank and The Bank of New
York.
Next year's Delta Dental Classic will take place
Tuesday, June 6, 2000-under what we hope are sunny
skies!
Despite being unable to play, golfers and sponsors
at this year's golf-less Classic raised $50,000 for
Special Olympics programs. To date, we have raised
$225,000 for Special Olympics from our annual event.
More Information Available
Via Automated Voice Response Unit
The newest improvements to Delta Dental's Voice
Response Unit (VRU) are ready and waiting for your
call.
The VRU provides subscribers, benefits managers
and dentists with automated answers to frequently
asked questions 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Now, the VRU enables callers to find out more than
ever before about their claim's status. With the
new enhancement, callers can find out when Delta
Dental received the claim, where it stands in the
payment process and when the check should be mailed.
In many cases callers can also learn why a payment
is delayed, and find out where to send the necessary
information to continue processing the claim.
The VRU also provides automated answers to questions
about subscriber benefits, eligibility, deductibles,
group number, plan maximums, deductibles and provider
lists.
To access the VRU, call Delta Dental Customer Service
at either (800) 452-9310, or the phone number designated
for your company.
There are times when you absolutely must speak
to a live representative. Delta Dental's Customer
Service agents are on the job Monday through Friday
from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. To connect with one, simply
dial our Customer Service number at (800) 452-9310.
When the recording begins, hit * on your touch-tone
phone. (You don't need to wait for the list of options
to finish.) You will be connected with the next available
Customer Service agent.
New Customer Service Agents
Undergo 6-Week Boot Camp
Delta Dental Plan of New Jersey has recently hired
more Customer Service agents to support our growing
list of subscribers. But before these new recruits
ever pick up the phone, they must attend an intensive
six-week class so that when your call comes in, they
are ready!
The most recent group graduated in August.
The first two weeks of training focus on educating
new agents about dental insurance. They also practice
becoming proficient using our cliams system, Deltanet.
Deltanet is the comprehensive system that the agents
use to communicate information about claims, eligibility,
group benefit plan design and more. Subsequent weeks
include practice sessions where trainees answer actual
calls while being closely monitored by experienced
Customer Service agents.
By the time the new Customer Service agents graduate,
they are able to research all required information
and process an adjustment, all while conversing with
the caller.
"We believe this training is vital because Customer
Service is the first point of contact most people
have with Delta Dental," says Training Coordinator
Barbara Koch, who oversees the program. "They need
to be prepared to create a great first impression." The
next training class is scheduled to begin this fall.
Patient Obligations Regarding
Up Front Payments
We've received a number of calls recently asking
whether subscribers must pay for dental services
at the time of their visit.
The answer is yes, but how much depends on the particular
dentist's office policy, and whether the patient
is seeing a participating or non-participating dentist
.
While participating Delta Dental dentists receive
payment directly from Delta Dental, they do have
the right to collect the deductible and co-payment
from patients at the time of the visit. (If a participating
dentist collects too much deductible or co-payment,
he or she is obligated to reimburse the patient anything
over and above what Delta Dental determines the patient
payment to be.)
Non-participating dentists may ask for the entire
fee up front. If a dentist does not participate with
Delta Dental, payment is automatically sent to the
subscriber.
As always, please contact Customer Service if you
have any questions.
You Know Where You Live, But
Do We?
Nearly 300 claims that we attempt to process each
day bear incorrect subscriber addresses. Perhaps
the patient forgot to inform the dental office about
a recent move, or the dental office recorded the
patient's new address incorrectly. Whatever the reason,
incorrect subscriber addresses result in payment
delays for patients and dentists, and additional
processing costs for Delta Dental.
Since most of us visit the dentist just twice a
year, it's easy to forget about an address change
that might have occurred months before. Patients
can make sure their records stay up to date by verifying
their current address each time they come in for
a dental appointment. Address changes should also
be sent to Delta Dental so we can update our records
accordingly.
It's a quick, easy way to make sure payments arrive
in a timely manner.
Patients can make sure their records stay up to
date by verifying their current address each time
they come in for a dental appointment.
Student Verification Time
Many employer plans require college-age dependents
to verify with Delta Dental their status as full-time
students when they file their first claim of the
new school year. Examples of student documentation
include:
- A copy of a paid tuition statement;
- A registrar's certificate of grades showing at
least 12 credits; or
- A current validated student ID card.
All documents should reflect the school year that
corresponds with dates of treatment provided by your
dentist.
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