The American Dental Association expressed its support for the passage of Dental and Optometric Care Access Act.
The bill would prevent dental and vision plans from creating the fees that network dentists can charge for services not covered by insurers and stopping dentists from being forced to sign contracts that are longer than two years, according to a March 15 news release from the ADA.
HR 1385 would help increase access to patient care and decrease the anticompetitive practices employed by insurance companies, the ADA said in a letter to Congress.
"This legislation is crucial to bring a needed balance to contract negotiations between providers, who are often small business owners, and large dental insurance companies who can leverage their greater market share to push doctors into accepting provisions, such as non-covered services, as part of their 'take it or leave it' contracts," ADA President Linda Edgar, DDS, and Executive Director Ray Cohlmia, DDS, said in the letter. "Passage of HR 1385 would balance the scales and bring equity to insurer/provider contracting at the federal level."
In addition, the legislation would ensure that patients who use self-funded dental plans would be given the same protections from insurer interference as individuals with fully insured plans, the release said.