Study: Practice ownership declining among dentists

By | December 11, 2017

Private practice ownership for dentists is steadily declining among all age groups, according to data published in the September issue of The Journal of the American Dental Association.

dental toolsThe ADA News reports that while 84 percent of dentists owned practices in 2005, the number fell to 80 percent by 2015. More importantly, the decline was seen in all age groups, according to “Practice Ownership Is Declining,” a column by Marko Vujicic, Ph.D., chief economist and vice president of the ADA Health Policy Institute.

Practice ownership is especially declining among younger dentists, according to the data. The age group with the biggest drop in ownership was dentists age 35 and under. Forty four percent in that age group were practice owners in 2005, compared with 38.2 percent in 2015. The second biggest drop was for dentists between 35-44, 83.4 percent of whom owned practices in 2005, compared with 78.7 percent in 2015.

Dr. Vujicic writes that the data indicate the decline in practice ownership is not being driven by the “de-aging” nor the “feminization” of the workforce.

Indeed, the data show no change in ownership numbers among female dentists, and that 93.7 percent of dentists aged 45-54 owned practices in 2005 compared with 90.7 percent in 2015.  The percentage of dentists aged 55-64 who own practices fell to 92.3 percent in 2015 from 93.8 percent in 2005.

In his commentary, Dr. Vujicic predicts these trends will continue and puts them into context by noting the stark drop of physicians who are practice owners — from 61 percent in 2001 to 47 percent in 2016.

“Physicians have simply adjusted and the data show employed physicians are actually quite happy,” Dr. Vujicic said.

To see the data and read the commentary, visit JADA.ADA.org and search for the article title, “Practice Ownership Is Declining.”

2 thoughts on “Study: Practice ownership declining among dentists

  1. Salt Lake City Family Dentistry

    Interesting article. I would have thought differently about the amount of dentist practices in Salt Lake City- There’s 3 shy of a million it seems. I guess this is good news for those of us that choose to stay in practice! Thanks!

    Reply

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