Navigating Employee Benefits: Strategic Solutions for Dental Practices

In association with Decisely/MMA, a Division of Marsh McLennan Agency (MMA)

As a dental practice owner, your focus is on delivering exceptional patient care. However, retaining top talent and maintaining profitability hinge on another critical area: providing competitive employee benefits and ensuring HR compliance. These administrative burdens often distract from clinical work, which is why a strategic partner is essential.

Decisely/MMA specializes in simplifying this complexity for dental practices and offers Smile Source members the expertise needed to manage, fund, and comply with all aspects of employee compensation and benefits.

Building a Competitive Benefits Package

In today's competitive labor market, a strong benefits package is non-negotiable for attracting and keeping great hygienists, assistants, and administrative staff. Dental practices require tailored advice to determine the optimal combination of core benefits (medical, dental, and vision) that strikes a balance between cost for the owner and value for the employee. Decisively/MMA can act as your dedicated health benefits broker, guiding you through market options, negotiating rates, and designing plans that fit your practice's unique demographics and budget.

Flexible Funding: ICHRA and Group Plans

When it comes to providing medical coverage, practices have more flexible options than ever before. Decisively/MMA helps you analyze which funding solution, traditional or modern, is right for your team:

• Traditional Group Plans: For many established practices, a traditional Group Health Plan remains the most straightforward option, offering defined benefits and pooled risk. Decisively/MMA manages the renewal process, ensuring you secure the best possible rates and plan designs year over year.
• Individual Coverage Health Reimbursement Arrangements (ICHRA): The ICHRA model offers revolutionary flexibility. Instead of sponsoring a specific group plan, the practice gives employees a tax-free allowance (the HRA) to purchase individual health insurance on the open market. This enables the practice to control costs precisely while giving employees maximum choice in their coverage. Decisively/MMA provides the platform and expertise to set up and administer an ICHRA in a compliant and efficient manner.
• Voluntary Coverage: Voluntary coverage is a group insurance plan in which enrollment and premium costs are primarily borne by the employee, rather than the employer.
  
  

The Power of Voluntary Coverage Plans

Voluntary benefits,  such as voluntary dental, life, disability, and critical illness, allow employees to customize their coverage, often at a lower premium, with no additional cost to the practice. These supplemental plans are a huge morale booster and a cost-effective way to enhance your total offering.

Even though the employee pays, the coverage is offered through the employer's group plan. This means employees receive much lower, discounted group rates than they could typically find if they purchased an individual dental policy.

Because enrollment is optional, employees choose whether to participate based on their family's needs and budget. If they opt in, the premium is automatically deducted from their paycheck, typically on a pre-tax basis (depending on the plan structure), providing an additional tax benefit.

We Mitigate Practice Risk

Regulatory oversight in healthcare and HR is relentless. Non-compliance, even accidental, can result in significant fines and legal headaches.

Decisely/MMA provides specialized Compliance Solutions to help practices navigate regulations related to employee benefits and human resources. They ensure your practice adheres to key federal mandates, including:

• ACA Reporting: Ensuring proper reporting under the Affordable Care Act.
• HIPAA & HITECH: Managing privacy and security requirements related to employee health information.
• ERISA: Proper administration and disclosure requirements for welfare and retirement plans.

By partnering with Decisely/MMA, practices gain peace of mind knowing their benefits programs meet all necessary legal requirements, allowing owners to focus squarely on patient treatment and clinical operations.

Industry Expertise: A Partner for Smile Source Members

Decisely/MMA understands the unique operational and financial constraints of private dental practices. Their dedicated Industry Expertise and partnership with Smile Source ensure the solutions they deliver are practical, scalable, and optimized for dentistry.

Their range of services goes beyond brokering to include:

• HR Technology & Payroll Integration: Streamlining administrative tasks.
• Retirement Plan Consulting: Designing 401(k) and other retirement savings vehicles.
• Property & Casualty Insurance: Ensuring your physical practice assets are protected.

Don't let benefits and compliance be a source of stress. By leveraging Decisively/MMA's collective power and resources, Smile Source members can unlock premier solutions and dedicated consulting, turning the complexity of benefits and compliance into a competitive advantage for staff recruitment and retention.