Dental school prepares students to care for patients, but the first months in practice bring a new learning curve. This session will show dental students how insurance participation, credentialing, claims, documentation and cost conversations can shape patient access and practice momentum. Attendees will leave with practical questions to ask before day one and a 30-, 60- and 90-day framework for building confidence in private practice or DSO settings.
At the conclusion of this session, participants will be able to:
- Explain how insurance participation can influence patient access, patient flow and early practice momentum.
- Build a practical 30-, 60- and 90-day plan for learning practice systems, clarifying team roles and supporting consistent documentation and claims workflows.
- Evaluate insurance networks and future practice settings based on local market fit, credentialing requirements, provider support and operational expectations.
- Apply clear, patient-centered language when discussing estimated costs and coverage while keeping treatment recommendations clinically driven.
Michelle Hart, RDH, MBA
Associate Vice President Dental Networks
Michelle has been in the dental industry for more than 35 years. She started out in the clinical practice setting as a registered dental hygienist before expanding her education and entering the payor side, serving in capacities including Professional Relations, Network Expansion, Recruiter, Quality Management, and Credentialing.
Michelle has been in her current role as Associate Vice President, Dental Networks with Humana for the past eight years, where her responsibilities include dental network expansion/retention and credentialing/compliance.
Jennifer Bincarousky
Dental Network Growth Strategy Manager, Provider Contracting
Jennifer has been in the dental industry for over 30 years. Her beginning years include EFDA certification and working in private dental practices while getting her degree in Communication Sciences with a focus on Speech Pathology and Audiology. The last 26 years have been spent building and retaining dental provider networks as well as managing teams of provider contracting specialists for various carriers.
Jennifer has been with Humana for more than five years and is responsible for network expansion, collaboration with Group Benefits and Medicare teams as well as identifying potential partnerships that add value to the member and provider experience.
Becky Benincasa
Manager, Provider Contracts, Dental Networks
Becky has been in the healthcare industry for 25 years with 15 of that in dental. She started out as a Compliance Manager with an MCO that provided care to Medicaid recipients and their families. She then moved into Provider Relations, Network Recruitment Management and Contracting.
Becky has been in her current position at Humana for the past four years. Her current role manages a team that supports network expansion efforts for Humana’s growing clients, employees and individual members.