D0220 Dental Code: Stop PPO Write-Offs & Build a More Profitable Practice

February 22, 2025
Written by: Jordon Comstock

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Tired of Losing Money to Insurance Companies? Read This.

d0220 dental code review: Dentists, let’s cut the fluff—insurance is screwing you over.

You take a PA (periapical) X-ray, bill D0220, and then BOOM—your PPO slashes the fee, and you’re left with crumbs. Meanwhile, your staff is drowning in admin work, chasing payments, and playing insurance roulette.

Fact: The average dental practice writes off $35,000+ per month in PPO discounts.
Fact: That’s $420,000+ per year—GONE.

Why are you still playing by insurance company rules?

It’s time for a better way to get paid. Today, I’ll show you how to ditch PPO dependency, increase case acceptance, and generate predictable recurring revenue (MRR & ARR) with a BoomCloud™ membership plan.

Let’s talk about:
What the D0220 dental code is & how insurance underpays you
How PPO write-offs are draining your profits
How to replace lost revenue with a membership plan
How BoomCloud™ helps practices scale to $500K+ in recurring income

Sound good? Let’s go.


Story: What is the D0220 Dental Code & Why You’re Probably Losing Money on It

What is D0220?

The D0220 dental code is used for a single periapical X-ray (PA), first film. It’s one of the most common diagnostic procedures in dentistry—used to check for:
Abscesses
Bone loss
Cysts or other pathologies

It’s quick, essential, and every dental office bills it regularly.

The Big Problem: PPOs Are Slashing Your Reimbursements

What D0220 Should Be Worth: $35-$60 per X-ray
What Most PPOs Pay: $15-$25

That means for every 100 PAs you take, you could be losing up to $4,500/month.

The True Cost of PPO Write-Offs

Let’s break it down:
You take 300 periapical X-rays (D0220) per month
PPOs underpay by $20 per X-ray
$6,000 in lost revenue PER MONTH
$72,000 PER YEAR—GONE!

And that’s just from one procedure. Imagine the total losses from crowns, SRPs, implants, and other treatments.

So, how do you fix this? Stop relying on PPOs & start offering a membership plan.


Offer: How a Membership Plan Can Save Your Practice & Increase Revenue

The Problem:

Most uninsured patients avoid the dentist because they fear the cost. They hear “root canal” and immediately think “$2,000? No thanks!”

The Solution? A Membership Plan.

Instead of dealing with PPO nonsense, why not have patients pay YOU directly?

How a Membership Plan Works:
✅ Patients pay a monthly or yearly fee for preventive care.
✅ They get discounts on all other treatments (including D0220 X-rays).
✅ You generate predictable, recurring revenue (MRR & ARR).
No insurance headaches, no claim denials, no BS.

Why Membership Patients Are Better Than PPO Patients

They spend 2X-4X more than insurance patients.
They accept treatment faster because cost isn’t a mystery.
They stay loyal longer—reducing patient churn.

Pro Tip: If you convert just 300 uninsured patients to a $35/month membership plan, that’s:
$10,500/month (MRR)
$126,000/year (ARR) in GUARANTEED revenue

And that’s BEFORE they even accept treatment.

Want to make membership plan management easy? Check out BoomCloud™ Click Here


The Epiphany Bridge: How One Dentist Scaled to $500K in Recurring Revenue

Meet Dr. Rachel Thompson, a general dentist who was tired of insurance write-offs & unpredictable income.

What She Did:

✔️ Launched a BoomCloud™ membership plan for cash-paying patients.
✔️ Marketed it on her website, social media, and in-office.
✔️ Offered a 10% discount on all X-rays & major treatments to members.

Results in 12 Months:

1,500+ patients joined the membership plan.
MRR hit $42,000/month before additional treatment revenue.
Increased case acceptance for crowns, implants, and perio by 65%.

Now, Dr. Thompson has predictable, recurring revenue and doesn’t worry about PPO write-offs anymore.

Want the same results? Check out BoomCloud™


Final Thoughts: Stop Letting Insurance Companies Control Your Income

Here’s Your 3-Step Plan to Take Back Control:

Step 1: Analyze Your PPO Write-Offs.
Find out how much money you’re losing every month (spoiler: it’s more than you think).

Step 2: Launch a Membership Plan.
Convert uninsured & fee-for-service patients into recurring revenue (MRR & ARR).

Step 3: Use BoomCloud™ to Scale Your Membership Program.
Automate billing, track renewals, and grow your revenue effortlessly.

More money. More patients. Less stress.

Ready to build a membership plan that scales? Check out BoomCloud™ and start making your practice insurance-free.


Resources & Further Reading:

BoomCloudApps.com – The #1 tool for launching & managing dental membership plans.
ADA Practice Report – Industry trends & insights on PPO reimbursement rates.
DentistryIQ – Expert tips for growing a profitable dental practice.

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vision-membership-plan-ebook Creating a patient membership plan is the smartest strategy to implement in your practice. You will increase patient satisfaction & loyalty, Increase predictable recurring revenue & increase sales!

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Jordon Comstock

Author Bio

Jordon Comstock is the Founder & CEO of BoomCloud™, a software that allows practice, clinic & spa owners to build, manage and scale a membership program. This helps practice & clinic owners to create recurring revenue & improve loyalty via membership programs. Jordon is passionate about Music, Hawaii, Healthcare businesses like: dentistry, optometry, med spas and massage spas. Schedule a demo of BoomCloud™ and learn how membership programs can improve your business. Here are more dental books to improve your practice

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