There’s No Such Thing as Immunity From Disaster

Hurricane season has arrived in the United States with horrific and catastrophic consequences. As human beings, our hearts go out to the citizens of Texas who live in the greater Houston area and to so many millions of people living in the state of Florida. The effects of Harvey and Irma were devastating, with property damage in the hundreds of billions of dollars. As dentists, we sometimes think that our world is falling down around us when a patient cancels a two-hour crown and bridge visit at the last minute. Just imagine how you would feel if you were the owner of a dental practice in either of these geographic locations? We feel pity and empathy and sorrow for these communities, but we are almost embarrassingly guilty with the relief that it didn’t happen to us.

Which is the point I want to make. It could happen to you – and will you be properly insured? Recently I have been speaking with many insurance brokers and dentists. My sense from these conversations is that less than 35% of all dentists are adequately covered for a disaster. Over the next few weeks, I intend to share unbiased information about which risk products a dental practice should own, why they should own them, and what those costs are as a percentage of total overhead.