Dental insurance payments are changing. For many practices, the days of simply opening the mail, matching an EOB to a paper check, posting the payment, and making a deposit are quickly disappearing.

Insurance companies are increasingly moving toward electronic payments, and dental practices are being asked to understand a whole new collection of acronyms, portals, enrollment processes, and reconciliation procedures.

EFT. ERA. Electronic claims. Virtual credit cards. Payer portals.

It can feel overwhelming, especially when your team already has more than enough on its plate. But here’s what I want dental practices to understand:

Electronic payments aren’t something to be afraid of.

I recently joined Dayna Johnson on the High Performing Dental Team Podcast to talk about exactly that.

First: What Is an EFT?

An EFT, or Electronic Funds Transfer, is simply the electronic version of receiving an insurance check.

Think of it like direct deposit for your paycheck.

Instead of the insurance company mailing a physical check to the practice, the payment is deposited directly into the practice’s bank account.

That means there is:

• No check sitting in the mail

• No physical deposit to make

• Less opportunity for payments to become lost or delayed

• Potentially much faster access to your insurance money

And that last point is becoming increasingly important.

Some insurance companies are already processing electronic payments more frequently than physical checks. That means practices relying on paper payments may wait longer to receive money they have already earned.

When you’re running a dental practice, days in the bank matter.

What Is an ERA?

An ERA, or Electronic Remittance Advice, is essentially the electronic version of your Explanation of Benefits.

The EFT tells you:

“The money was deposited.”

The ERA tells you:

“Here’s what that money was for.”

Depending on your practice management software and payer, ERAs can be delivered directly into the software and may significantly simplify payment posting.

Instead of someone manually opening an EOB, identifying each patient, entering every payment and adjustment, and then scanning or uploading the documentation, much of that information can already be available electronically.

That’s where practices can begin seeing a major administrative advantage.

Years ago, I worked in an office where entering one large Medicaid payment could take approximately three hours.

Once electronic remittance was properly set up through the software, that same basic workflow dropped to roughly 15 minutes.

Not every practice will experience a difference that dramatic, but it illustrates what the technology can do.

Do You Need Both EFTs and ERAs?

Ideally, yes.

They perform two different jobs.

EFT = the money

ERA = the explanation of the money

Practices generally enroll for EFT payments with individual insurance companies or through the applicable enrollment process.

ERA enrollment may involve another registration process depending on your practice management software, clearinghouse, and payer.

And I’ll be the first to admit:

The setup process can feel tedious.

You may have multiple payer websites, different registration requirements, different usernames, different portals, and different steps depending on your software.

But don’t let the setup process keep you stuck using a less efficient system forever.

The work you do upfront can eliminate hours of administrative work later.

The Step Practices Cannot Skip: Reconciliation

This is probably one of the biggest concerns I hear about EFTs.

“How do I know the money that was posted actually made it into our bank account?”

That is exactly the right question.

An ERA appearing in your software does not automatically mean that you should assume the money made it into the bank.

You need checks and balances.

There can occasionally be delays between receiving the ERA and seeing the corresponding EFT deposit.

There can also be errors.

I’ve personally worked with a practice where insurance companies showed payments as transferred, but some of those payments never actually reached the bank.

Had the practice simply posted the ERAs without comparing them against the bank deposits, the software would have shown insurance payments that the practice had never actually received.

That’s why reconciliation matters.

Faster Payments Aren’t the Only Benefit

Faster cash flow gets most of the attention, but there are several other advantages to properly implemented EFT and ERA systems.

1. Less manual payment posting

When your software can pull ERA information directly into the patient ledger, your team spends less time manually entering insurance payments and adjustments.

2. Less scanning and uploading

Some systems can automatically place the appropriate remittance information into the patient’s documents.

That’s one less task for your team.

3. Better documentation

Electronic systems can create a more consistent trail showing what was paid, adjusted, denied, or applied to the patient.

4. Easier access to information

Instead of searching through stacks of EOBs, payer websites, mailed checks, and scanned documents, much more of the information can live inside your practice management system.

5. More efficient use of your team’s time

Your team should be spending its time resolving actual insurance problems—not performing repetitive administrative tasks that technology can safely handle.

There Are Still Limitations

Electronic insurance systems aren’t perfect.

ERAs can sometimes contain less detail than a traditional EOB because electronic transmissions may have limitations on how much information is passed through certain fields.

That means there will still be situations where your team needs to log into an insurance portal and research a claim.

Different insurance companies also have different processes.

Different software systems offer different levels of integration.

And these systems continue to change.

That’s why insurance training can’t be something your team learns once and never revisits.

Your Clinical Team Is Part of the Insurance Process, Too

One of the biggest misconceptions I see inside dental practices is this:

“Insurance is an admin responsibility.”

It isn’t.

Insurance follows the patient throughout the entire practice.

Your administrative team may be responsible for submitting and following up on claims, but your clinical team gives them the documentation they need to get those claims paid.

That can include:

• Diagnostic-quality radiographs

• Required pre-op or post-op images

• Complete clinical notes

• Accurate procedure documentation

• Clear narratives when appropriate

• Timely completion of records

You can do incredible dentistry.

But if the administrative team doesn’t have the documentation necessary to demonstrate why the treatment was performed, they may struggle to get the claim paid.

Your insurance system therefore isn’t just an insurance coordinator’s system.

It’s a team system.

The Dental Insurance World Is Changing Quickly

If there’s one thing I want practices to take away from this conversation, it’s this:

Don’t wait until an insurance company forces you to change before you build your systems.

Electronic payments aren’t going away.

Insurance portals aren’t going away.

Automation isn’t going away.

And the practices that build good processes now will have a much easier time adapting as payer requirements continue evolving.

That doesn’t mean blindly turning everything over to technology.

Quite the opposite.

The goal is to pair technology with better systems, better reconciliation, and better accountability.

Need Help Setting Up EFTs and ERAs in Your Dental Practice?

One of the reasons I created my EFT and ERA training is because I’ve seen how intimidated dental teams can become by this process.

The training is designed to help practices understand the setup, organize their payer information, establish reconciliation systems, and navigate the changing electronic insurance environment without feeling like they’re figuring everything out alone.

I’ve also included resources and spreadsheets designed to make implementation easier for your team.

Whether your practice has never implemented EFTs, has already enrolled but doesn’t have a good reconciliation process, or simply wants to confirm you’re doing it correctly, the goal is the same:

Help your practice do the dentistry, submit it correctly, and get paid for the work you’ve performed.

LEARN MORE ABOUT COLLEEN’S EFT & ERA TRAINING

Watch My Conversation With Dayna Johnson

Want to hear the full conversation?

Dayna Johnson and I go deeper into EFTs, ERAs, reconciliation, dental insurance workflows, eligibility, and how technology is changing the way dental practices manage insurance.

Listen in to the podcast on Apple Podcasts. 

Or visit Dayna Johnson’s original High Performing Dental Team Podcast episode here:

LINK TO ORIGINAL ARTICLE/EPISODE

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