Check out an interesting article by Dr. Roger Levin with the Levin Group discussing some of the ways the economy has impacted the dental profession.
Most interesting to me are Dr. Levin’s comments about young dentists graduating with more debt than ever before, which is leading to more doctors working as employees for dental practice management companies. This is something we have seen more frequently over the past 36 months, and I agree that is trend will likely continue.
Also, Dr. Levin states that Americans will have less money to spend on dentistry, citing increased savings rates by Americans since the recession began. I agree with this to a point, but would also point out that an aging population will help keep the demand for dental services high.
The number of Americans ages 65 and older is anticipated to grow by 35% between 2010 and 2020 (versus a 10% rise in the overall population). This aging demographic will need dental services and should help offset the patients potentially lost in younger demographics who choose to save or spend income on other items. Also of note, price sensitivity is lowest with Boomers. They do want value and a high level of customer care, but many middle and upper middle class Boomers are in a better cash position to invest in dental services than younger Americans.
Read the entire article here: http://www.dentaleconomics.com/index/display/article-display/0130890652/articles/dental-economics/volume-101/issue-12/features/seven-ways-the-new-economy-has-changed-dentistry.html
