[taco.vidal]

http://calgaryherald.com/news/local-...-for-albertans


Some of the more interesting bits below. Its a long article with many interesting facts and lot more detailed information than in the excerpts below.

The thing that has always irked me is the wide range of rates for the same service. It makes sense that a downtown office in the +15 has higher overhead costs than a strip mall office in the NE. However, I don't think that alone explains the wide range in rates for the same procedures. If you're looking for a new dentist and get some referrals, then if you are cost conscience, you would have to call around to get an idea of rates for some standard charges. Its important to remember that not everyone has insurance and its often low wage earners that have little or no insurance.

A visit to the dentist in Alberta may end the discomfort of a toothache, but a Herald investigation shows that appointment is likely to cause more financial pain than just about anywhere else in the country.
As patients in the only province without a suggested fee guide, industry experts say Albertans may be oblivious to the fact that fast-rising charges mean they are paying significantly more than most other Canadians for care.

With little or no advertising of dental fees, consumer advocates believe the public is also unaware that the prices levied by dentists within the province often range widely.

An internal survey conducted by the province’s dental association and college each year reveals how much more Alberta patients commonly pay.

For example, the median price of $77 for an annual recall exam in Alberta in 2014 was more than two times the suggested fee in any of the other three western provinces.

Numbers compiled by a Toronto-based human resources adviser show dental prices in Alberta have surged over 25 per cent in the last five years alone, nearly twice as fast as its national index of fees.

When dental plan use was factored in with fee hikes, Buck Consultants warned companies last year that “Alberta stands out as having high expected cost increases, exceeding nine per cent.”

Indeed, even a 2013 internal study for the Alberta dental association, while noting that fees for fillings here were often similar to those in other jurisdictions, found that historically “Alberta dentists have charged higher average fees than dentists in other provinces, and it appears from the recent … surveys that this is still the case.”

Claims data provided to the Herald by a major insurer shows fees also vary widely within Alberta.

For example, an annual checkup, including a dental exam and one unit each of scaling and polishing, averages out to about $202 across the province, but can cost as little as $119 in Edmonton and up to $394 in Fort McMurray.

Within Calgary, the price for the same checkup varies from as little as $151 in the city’s northeast to over $265 at a downtown office.

Still, recent listings of dental practices for sale suggest the profession can be quite lucrative.

For example, an established office in Calgary with two dentists and approximately 2,500 patients had gross revenues of nearly $2.2 million a year or about $875 in billings for each active file.

The cash flow of $1.5 million after expenses amounted to an “exceptional” 69 per cent of revenues and placed the unidentified facility in the “top 5 per cent” of general dental practices, according to the ROI Corporation listing.

Another city dentist selling his 16-year-old office through Practice Solutions Inc. had gross revenues last year of nearly $970,000 from about 1,075 active files or about $900 in annual billings per patient.

The listing noted that had yielded a “good” profit margin of 46 per cent or $450,000 after expenses, but before debt service, for working 32 hours a week.