Washington Dental Service (WDS), Washington state’s largest provider of dental benefits, has introduced a reduced rate plan for small businesses with 10 to 99 enrolled employees. Nearly 30,000 businesses fall into this category statewide, according to WDS.
The new rate plan comes less than three months after WDS cut reimbursement rates to dentists by at least 15 percent, citing increased healthcare costs.
“We are responding to feedback from small business owners, and the brokers that represent them, that we need to make dental care more affordable,” said Jim Dwyer, CEO of Washington Dental Service. “As a not-for-profit organization our mission is to promote oral health and ensure that quality dental care is available. By working aggressively to reduce administrative and claims costs we are now able to offer the most comprehensive plans in the market while making coverage more accessible for thousands of small businesses.”
The new pooled rate plan goes into effect for new policies beginning October 1, 2011.
