Conflicts in the Relationship Between Dentists and Health Insurance Providers

Abstract

This article aimed to find, in the national literature, the reasons for the conflictive relationship between health insurance providers and dental surgeons. The study describes the history of insurance companies in the Brazilian market and the professional profile of dental surgeons. Issues related to the autonomy, remuneration and job satisfaction of the health care professional were found. This might encourage critical thought among these professionals regarding work relations in the field of supplementary dental care. The analysis showed that the supplementary health system developed for over thirty years without government interference, culminating in an alarming, disorderly and unregulated growth, influenced by the excess supply of dentists and the reduction in the number of patients who pay for private services. Professionals who contract with health insurance companies in the hopes of expanding their practice must yield to their demands. These companies often limit the provider to less costly treatment, interfere with their treatment plan and use outdated price lists to pay for clinical procedures, leading to a negative perception and dissatisfaction with the insurance companies’ performance. The studied relationship was found to be truly conflictive, affecting the healthcare provider not only at the financial but also personal level. This conflict is related to the growth of the supplementary health system, which affects dental practice at its core, without the due control and supervision measures, necessary to correct asymmetries in corporate relations and avoid precarious working conditions, being taken.