The Illinois legislature recently approved a bill that will regulate third party financing in the dental industry.
Six notes:
1. A previous version of the bill would have required dental office employees to provide certain disclosures and treatment cost estimates before establishing financing agreements. The bill also would have prohibited dental offices from charging open-end credit, a line of credit or a third-party loan for services not yet rendered, among other stipulations.
2. The Illinois State Dental Society raised concerns about how the initial version of the bill would affect patient access and the bill's potential administrative burden on dental offices, leading to additional discussions about the bill's requirements.
3. The finalized version of the bill prohibits dentists and employees from filling out or submitting financing applications on behalf of patients.
4. Dental offices are also prohibited from giving patients electronic devices to fill out financing applications, and from advertising third-party financing during patient treatments or in sensitive settings.
5. Lastly, dental offices will be required to provide disclosures on third party financing products to ensure patients are aware.
6. The bill will go into effect Jan. 1.