Mastering Accounts Receivable in Dental Practices: Insights from Andy Cleveland

September 19, 2025

Mastering Accounts Receivable in Dental Practices: Insights from Andy Cleveland

In the latest episode of the Tooth and Coin Podcast, we sat down with Andy Cleveland, renowned as the Accounts Receivable Ninja. With almost two decades in the revenue cycle space, Andy has devoted his career to helping dental practices optimize their accounts receivable (AR) processes. From ensuring timely payments to implementing effective financial strategies, Andy shares invaluable insights on how dental practices can manage their financials more efficiently. In this blog post, we’ll highlight the key takeaways from our discussion with Andy and explore strategies dental practices can adopt to reduce their AR challenges.

The Journey into Dental Financials

Andy Cleveland's journey into the niche world of dental financial management wasn’t planned. Like many career paths, Andy discovered the dental community's unique challenges and unmet needs somewhat serendipitously. Over the years, he’s partnered with best-in-class service providers and trained numerous dental practices across the United States, empowering them to take control of their financial health.

Understanding the Importance of Accounts Receivable

One of the core challenges in dental practices is managing accounts receivable efficiently. Many practices struggle with outstanding balances that go uncollected, which ultimately impacts their overall financial health. Andy emphasizes that many dental professionals are primarily trained in clinical excellence, not necessarily business management. This gap in knowledge can lead to a delay in addressing AR issues.

Assessing the Health of Your Accounts Receivable

When assessing a dental practice's AR, Andy suggests looking beyond textbook metrics like production-related KPIs. Instead, he advises understanding the practice’s specific context, such as location, risk tolerance, and long-term growth strategy. It's not just about having a zero balance but about having a strategy that aligns with the practice’s goals.

Common Mistakes and Practical Solutions

Mistakes in insurance and patient receivables are common. Andy points out that practices often lack thorough training in filing clean insurance claims, resulting in delays and rejections. To address this, practices should consider more frequent billing cycles and potentially outsourcing insurance filing if it’s cost-effective. By streamlining these processes, practices can significantly improve their AR health.

The Power of Regular and Strategic Billing

Implementing frequent patient billing, such as bi-weekly statements, can be an effective way to manage AR. By doing so, dental practices can stand out in a world where monthly billing is the norm, encouraging patients to prioritize their dental bills within their budget. Personalizing communication with patients and establishing protocols for follow-ups are essential strategies for maintaining AR health.

When to Escalate Collections

Deciding when to escalate unpaid accounts to a collection agency is a delicate balance. Andy suggests that practices should not shy away from enlisting third-party help when accounts are overdue by 90 days. Having a licensed third party involved can add an external pressure that often motivates patients to pay.

Ultimately, the best way to handle AR issues is through prevention. By implementing effective processes from the moment treatment acceptance occurs, practices can avoid falling into the trap of extensive unpaid balances. Andy Cleveland emphasizes that simple steps, like adequate staff training and implementing personalized patient communication, can lead to significant improvements.

The business side of dentistry may seem daunting, but by adopting the right strategies and seeking suitable expertise, practices can maintain healthy financial standing while continuing to provide excellent patient care. Keep checking back for more insightful content as we explore various facets of dental business management.