What is a dental membership program

Short answer: a dental membership program is a plan a dental practice sells directly to its patients. Patients pay a monthly or annual fee to the practice that covers preventive care such as cleanings, exams and x-rays, plus a discount on other treatment. There is no insurance carrier, no claims and no annual maximum, and the practice keeps the full fee.

Watch the four-minute course video, then read the full breakdown below. A dental membership program is the fastest way for a practice to build predictable recurring revenue without an insurance network.

What a dental membership program actually is

Do you have Amazon Prime or a Costco membership? Those are perfect examples of a successful membership program. You can create the same strategy for your practice. Patients pay your office a monthly or annual fee to get access to benefits and discounts at your practice — your practice only, there is no network. Your practice sets the plan benefits and the plan pricing, then promotes it to existing and new patients.

Unlike dental insurance, there is no third party between you and the patient. No claims, no write-offs, no waiting periods, no annual maximums, no pre-authorizations. The patient pays you directly, and you decide what the plan includes.

What a typical plan includes

Most practices build a simple adult plan, a child plan, and a perio plan. A common adult plan at $35/month or $350/year covers:

• Two cleanings per year
• Two exams and necessary x-rays
• One emergency exam
• A 15–20% discount on all other treatment

The preventive visits are the hook. The discount on restorative treatment is what raises case acceptance, because the patient has already decided to spend money with you.

The recurring revenue math

Imagine 1,000 patients paying your office $35/month. That is $35,000 of predictable recurring revenue every month — and that counts membership fees only, before any treatment those members accept. What does that do for your practice? It covers payroll on a schedule you can plan around. It covers overhead and supply orders. And it lets you sleep at night.

Cash-flow swings are a dental practice’s worst problem. I have run both business models — a predictable recurring revenue model and a feast-and-famine model — and I would never go back. Practices that track it typically see members spend meaningfully more per year than uninsured non-members, because there is no annual maximum telling them to stop.

Who a membership program is for

It fits any practice with uninsured patients — and every practice has them. It is also the exit ramp for owners who want to drop low-paying PPO contracts: you replace the volume the PPO sent you with members who pay your full fee minus your own discount, not the insurer’s.

How to launch one

1. Price the plan from your own fee schedule so preventive care is covered and the plan still profits.
2. Train the whole team to offer it — the front desk and hygienists enroll more members than the dentist does.
3. Automate billing and renewals so nobody chases cards or spreadsheets.
4. Promote it on your website, in the operatory, and to every patient who says “I don’t have insurance.”

Action steps

1. Share this video with your team members — this is the key to success.

2. Work through the rest of the course chapters below.

Course chapters

Chapter 1 – What is a Membership Plan (this page)

Chapter 2 – How to Create Your Plan

Chapter 3 – Benefits of a Dental Membership Program

Chapter 4 – What is BoomCloud?

Chapter 5 – Eight Reasons to Generate Predictable Recurring Revenue

Chapter 6 – The Growth Mindset Framework

Instructor

Jordon Comstock is the founder and CEO of BoomCloud. He teaches dental practices how membership programs generate recurring revenue, build patient loyalty, and increase case acceptance.

See how BoomCloud prices membership plan software or book a walkthrough with our team.

Dental membership program vs insurance vs savings plans

	In-house membership program	Dental insurance	Third-party savings plan
Who the patient pays	The practice	An insurance carrier	A network company
Claims and maximums	None	Claims, annual maximums, waiting periods	None, but network fee schedules
Who sets the price	The practice	The carrier's fee schedule	The network

How to start a dental membership program

1. Price one or two adult tiers (and a child tier) against your own fee schedule.
2. Decide what's included, usually two cleanings, exams and x-rays, plus a discount on other treatment.
3. Publish an enrollment page and train the front desk to offer it to uninsured patients.
4. Use in-house dental membership software to automate billing and renewals.

For a step-by-step guide, read how to start a dental membership plan.

Frequently asked questions

Is a dental membership program the same as dental insurance?

No. It is a direct agreement between the practice and the patient. There's no carrier, no claims and no annual maximum.

How much does a dental membership program cost patients?

It depends on the practice's fees. Pricing is set against each practice's own fee schedule, so it varies from office to office.

Who is a dental membership program best for?

Uninsured patients, patients who have hit their annual maximum and practices reducing their reliance on PPO contracts.