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    The Dental Professional's Insurance Planning Guide

    A Guide to Professional Insurance To Support Your Dental Career

    Few professionals face the kind of evolving financial and insurance needs that dentists do. Dental students and residents may have high earning potential, but little income. Early-career dentists often carry significant debt, just as they’re expected to “live up” to a new lifestyle. And those pursuing practice ownership face steep learning curves in business management, risk exposure, and tax planning.

    At Treloar & Heisel, we’ve worked with thousands of dental professionals, and we hear the same concerns time and again:

    • What if I make the wrong decision?
    • How can I manage my finances while caring for patients and spending time with my family?
    • Everyone else seems so much more prepared than I am.
    • What happens to my family, staff, or practice if something happens to me?
    • I can’t find an advisor who actually understands dentistry.

    These questions are both real and valid. Building a successful dental career takes more than clinical skill. It requires intentional planning to protect your income, your business, and your future.

    Because one thing is clear: you can’t plan for the future if the present isn’t secure.

    That’s where strategic insurance and financial planning come in. With the right partner, you can move forward at every stage of your dental career — whether you’re still in school, running your own practice, or preparing to retire.

    In this guide, we’ll explore:

    • Why financial and insurance planning must evolve as your career progresses
    • The most common challenges dentists face at each stage
    • What to do now to build security and peace of mind for the future
    • How to choose an advisor to guide you through the challenges as your career evolves

    Table of Contents

     

    1. 12 Reasons Why Financial and Insurance Planning Must Evolve Throughout Your Career
    2. Dentists in Training: Addressing Dental School and Residency Needs 
    3. Dentists in Practice: Building a Strong Foundation
    4. Practice Owners and Partners: Entrepreneurial Dentistry
    5. Dentists Nearing Retirement: Protecting Your Future, Honoring Your Work

     

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    12 Reasons Why Financial and Insurance Planning Must Evolve Throughout Your Career

    As you know, a dental career is anything but static. Each stage — training, practicing, owning, and retiring — brings new challenges, goals, and risks that require thoughtful planning and support. Here are important reasons why financial and insurance planning should be an ongoing process throughout your career:

    insurance planning

    As a practicing dentist:

    1. Your income grows, and so does the need to protect it.
    2. Your professional visibility increases, and so does your exposure to liability.
    3. Regulatory and insurance landscapes evolve with your career stage and over time.
    4. Without regular reviews, outdated plans can leave costly gaps in coverage.

    As a practice owner:

    1. Business ownership introduces new liabilities and tax complexities.
    2. You need a strategy for succession planning or an unexpected exit.
    3. Your personal and business finances become more intertwined.
    4. Cyber threats and employment risks add new layers of liability.

    As an individual:

    1. Your goals evolve from repaying debt to building wealth and planning for retirement.
    2. Life brings change: marriage, kids, aging parents, and health shifts.
    3. Asset accumulation demands stronger protection and estate planning.
    4. Your ability to qualify for key coverage may change as your health does.

    Dentists in Training: Addressing Dental School & Residency Needs

    Dental school and residency bring a unique mix of challenges that can feel overwhelming. One challenge — which can lead to anxiety — is a growing loan balance, especially with average dental school debt often reaching six figures.

    During this time, students and residents are gaining expertise, but formal training rarely includes personal finance, insurance, or business skills. They may feel paralyzed by financial decision-making, unsure whether to invest, save, or simply make ends meet. 

    On top of this, there's uncertainty about their future path: Is specialization the right option? Is a DSO or a private practice the better path? This ambiguity makes it hard to plan. 

    Unfortunately, the opportunity to secure affordable disability insurance while young and healthy often goes unnoticed, even though securing coverage earlier yields better long-term value.

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    Planning for the Future as a Dentist in Training

    If you’re still a dentist in training, it’s the perfect opportunity to set yourself up for professional and personal success. Here are four insurance and financial aspects you need to understand before graduation or program completion:

    1. Disability Income Insurance

    One of the most significant risk management tools available to you is Disability Income Insurance (DI). This coverage can protect your means of earning a living by supplementing your lost income while you are unable to work due to an injury or illness. But what happens if you have to leave dental school due to an injury or illness?

    While your school or residency may offer disability insurance coverage, depending on the type of coverage, it may not be continuable after you leave training. Further, it may not be customizable to your individual needs. 

    Purchasing an individual disability insurance policy will allow you to tailor the coverage to your unique needs.

    2. Medical Underwriting

    One of the steps involved in obtaining disability income insurance is medical underwriting. 

    Since health and age are both factors that drive the cost of DI policies, it’s best to go through medical underwriting as soon as possible. 

    Most dental students and residents who undergo medical underwriting will see substantially lower rates; the cost of disability income insurance is less for a 25-year-old than it is for a 45-year-old. Many insurers also offer student rates for additional discounts. When you lock in your rate, you can secure coverage at an affordable cost while still in school or residency, and then increase your coverage as your income grows.

    3. Malpractice Insurance

    Students and residents typically have malpractice insurance coverage while doing clinical work under the auspices of their training program. However, you may need to consider malpractice insurance for board exams, externships, and moonlighting exposure as a resident.

    4. Foundational Financial Planning

    Take some basic steps now to give you momentum later. Begin budgeting, build an emergency fund, and explore repayment options for student loans.

    What To Do Now

    ✓ Schedule a risk assessment with an advisor who understands dentistry and your insurance needs during dental school. Locate an advisor here. 

    ✓ Download your copy of our complimentary guide, Your Post-Dental School Survival Guide. 

    In this guide, you'll find information about:

    • Decisions you may have to make
    • Additional skills you may need to learn
    • Key concepts concerning financial and career success
    • Insurance options you may need to consider
    • Next steps you can take in your career

    What Happens After Dental School?  Get your copy of our complimentary Post-Dental School Survival Guide to discover what to expect in the critical first years of your career.  

    A Practice Owners Guide to Business Coverage

    Dentists in Practice: Building a Strong Foundation

    The transition from dental school to professional practice often comes with a welcome boost in income, but it also introduces new layers of financial and personal complexity. 

    Many early-career dentists experience lifestyle inflation, choosing to upgrade cars, homes, or travel before putting a savings strategy in place. At the same time, they may not fully understand what their employer-sponsored insurance does and does not cover. This confusion can lead to mismatched or insufficient coverage that leaves significant gaps in protection.

    As dentists move into their mid-career phase, they often take on growing family responsibilities. A mortgage, children’s education, aging parents, and an increasingly complex household budget create competing financial demands. 

    While retirement may still feel far off, putting off planning during this stage can significantly reduce options and increase risk later on. This is also the time when professional liability can increase due to greater exposure, specialization, or expanded procedures.

    Planning for the Future as a Practicing Dentist

    As a practicing dentist, whether you are still early in your career or already in mid-career, it’s time to get serious about your goals. 

    Proactively schedule annual financial and insurance wellness meetings with trusted advisors. The first is a review of your insurance coverage to determine if your risk management strategy is leaving you with any exposure. The second is a financial planning meeting to review your goals and your progress toward meeting them. Here are the insurance and financial aspects to understand during these phases of your career:

    1. Disability Income Insurance

    If you already have this valuable coverage, speak with your advisor to make sure your policy is keeping pace with your income and that you have elected the definitions and insurance riders that make sense for your situation. 

    If you haven’t yet explored disability income insurance (DI), it’s time. DI is an important tool to help safeguard your income. 

    If you’ve avoided applying for DI due to preexisting conditions, there are DI solutions for those with health concerns. Regardless of the reason why you don’t have DI, speak with an advisor at a firm that specializes in the dental profession and learn how a policy can benefit you and your family. 

    2. Malpractice Insurance

    Malpractice insurance isn’t a set it and forget it policy. As your career progresses, your coverage needs evolve, and you’ll need to make changes to your policy to protect yourself and your assets from malpractice claims.

    Ensure your malpractice policy aligns with your current scope of practice, including any high-risk procedures or expanded services.

    There are many insurance companies offering malpractice policies, but it’s important to choose a malpractice insurance company that specializes in serving dentists, has a dedicated risk management department, and has a proven track record.

    To learn more, download your complimentary copy of our resource, Dental Malpractice Insurance Survival Kit, where you’ll find the information you need. Topics range from terms you need to understand, like tail coverage, to concepts like consent to settle and patient compensation funds.

    3. Property & Casualty Insurance

    To protect the things you own, you need property and casualty insurance. Your home and auto policies fit in this category, as would policies that cover business assets if you own a dental office. Property insurance covers the property itself, while casualty insurance covers your liability in the event of an accident or injury. 

    As your career evolves, the number and value of your assets will likely increase. An annual review of your assets is vital to protect the things you value. 

    As your income increases, so does your liability exposure, and your property and casualty policies may no longer provide sufficient coverage. Umbrella policies are a type of insurance that you may need for higher coverage limits.

    4. Financial Planning

    Meeting your personal financial goals requires more than a budget and a savings account. You’ll need a long-term, coordinated plan that is actively managed.

    There are a number of financial planning tips that you’ve likely heard before. But to achieve your financial goals, there is one critical tip you must know:

    Financial planning should not be DIY

    Find a financial advisor who has experience in working with dentists; they will understand the specific needs of your career and your income trajectory. This valuable information will enable them to help you achieve your goals.

    What To Do Now

    ✓ Find an advisor who understands dentistry and the full range of the dental career lifecycle. 

    ✓ Schedule a risk management assessment.

    ✓ Schedule a consultation with a financial advisor who understands dentistry and discuss financial planning needs.

    You Deserve More Than Guesswork When it comes to insurance coverage that protects you, your family, and your career you deserve a guide. Contact us today for custom-tailored advice.  

    Practice Owners and Partners: Entrepreneurial Dentistry

    From the moment you begin exploring practice ownership, your to-do list grows rapidly; you first need to determine the cost of starting or buying a practice and put a business plan together to secure financing. And the planning process only keeps going from there.

    For many dentists, owning or partnering in a dental practice can be one of the most rewarding paths in their careers, but it also comes with a new set of risks and responsibilities. Practice owners juggle patient care with business leadership, often navigating a steep learning curve in leadership, operations, and finance.

    One important aspect of dental practice ownership is risk management. Without a well-defined business insurance structure, it’s easy to overlook risks or leave gaps in protection. Liability concerns increase, not only from the risk of malpractice claims, but also from employment practices, general liability, and worker’s compensation issues, property damage, data breach, and other operational exposures. Building a practice is a tremendous achievement, but protecting it requires a proactive, ongoing risk and financial management strategy.

    Planning for the Future as a Dental Practice Owner

    As a dentist, you aren’t expected to be a risk management expert, and you should seek advice from an experienced dental practice insurance professional. 

    A dental practice is unique from nearly every other business, and a general business insurance agency may not have the knowledge to fully protect your practice. 

    Here are a few, but not all, of the policies to consider: 

    dental practice partner
    1. Business Owner’s Protection: To protect your practice’s physical assets and day-to-day operations, a business owner’s protection policy combines general liability, property insurance, and business interruption coverage.

    2. Data Breach Coverage: In the event of a cyberattack or accidental breach, data breach coverage helps manage legal fees, patient notifications, and identity protection services.

    3. Employment Practices Liability Insurance: Small and mid-sized dental practices often underestimate employment practices liability insurance, yet they’re more vulnerable to lawsuits due to limited HR resources and policies.

    4. Entity Malpractice Insurance: To ensure your practice is fully protected, entity malpractice insurance extends coverage beyond individual providers to the business itself.

    5. Business Overhead Expense Disability Insurance: If you’re unable to work due to injury or illness, business overhead insurance can help cover ongoing expenses like rent, utilities, and staff salaries.

    6. Business Loan Protection Insurance: If you become unable to work due to an illness or injury, business loan protection insurance may cover business loan-related payments for outstanding loan obligations tied to your practice.

    To review other types of business insurance that may also be well-suited for your risk management profile, view our Practice Owner's Guide to Business Coverage.

    Additionally, owning a practice can blur the line between business and personal finances. As a practice owner, it’s important to work with a wealth management advisor.

    What To Do Now

    ✓ Find an advisor who understands both dentistry and dental practice management. 

    ✓ Schedule annual risk management assessments and reviews.

    ✓ Schedule annual review and planning meetings with a financial advisor who understands dentistry and dental practice management.

    ✓ Download your complimentary copy of our resource, The Practice Owner’s Guide to Business Coverage, to learn the ins and outs of dental practice insurance options to help protect your practice.

    Downloadable Guide

     

    Dentists Nearing Retirement: Protecting Your Future, Honoring Your Work

    After a career spent serving patients and potentially building a practice, retirement should feel like a well-earned milestone and not a source of anxiety. Yet for many dentists, the financial and logistical pieces of retirement remain unclear well into their later career years.

    Common concerns include not knowing when and where to retire, how much income will be needed, and whether current savings and investments will provide enough security. For practice owners without a clear succession or sale plan in place, the prospect of transitioning ownership adds another layer of complexity.

    After a career dedicated to building a practice and serving patients, you deserve a retirement strategy that honors that work and protects what you've built.

    Dental-Retirement-Planning

    Planning for the Future as a Dentist Nearing Retirement

    ​​It’s never too early — or too late — to start preparing for a confident retirement. A coordinated financial and insurance strategy can provide clarity, security, and peace of mind.

    What you can do now:

    1. Start Planning Before You're Ready: Retirement planning works best when it starts early. If you haven’t started yet, don’t wait; now is the time to model out various scenarios and refine your goals.
    2. Practice Valuation and Exit Strategy: As a practice owner, a solid exit plan starts with understanding the value of your practice. A series of 2–3 valuations over time can help you track growth and position your practice for a successful transition, whether through a buy/sell agreement or succession plan. With a buy/sell agreement, you may need disability buy/sell insurance or life insurance for buy/sell agreements.
    3. Comprehensive Financial Planning: If you haven’t already, it’s time to integrate income, estate, and tax planning into a single strategy. Work with advisors who understand the unique financial realities of dental professionals nearing retirement, including long-term care considerations and retirement income simulation.
    4. Review Your Insurance: Life insurance may continue to play a role in estate planning or long-term care, especially if you haven’t previously considered a hybrid policy that combines both benefits.

    What To Do Now

    ✓ Find an advisor who works with dentists nearing retirement. 

    ✓ Start or continue with comprehensive financial planning under the guidance of an experienced advisor.

    ✓ Start or continue your retirement planning.

    Have questions about your unique situation? Contact us! Our team is here for you. 

    You Deserve More Than Guesswork When it comes to insurance coverage that protects you, your family, and your career you deserve a guide. Contact us today for custom-tailored advice.  

    Have Treloar & Heisel in Your Corner

    A dental career is filled with milestones — from your first patient to your last, from repaying loans to building wealth, from launching a practice to leaving a legacy. Each stage brings new goals, challenges, and risks. And at every step, your financial and insurance strategies need to evolve with you.

    At Treloar & Heisel, we’ve spent nearly 70 years helping dental professionals make informed, confident decisions about their financial futures. We understand the demands of dentistry and the importance of working with an advisor who truly gets your world.

    Whether you’re still in training, building your practice, or planning for retirement, we’re here to help you:

    • Protect what you’ve worked so hard to build
    • Prepare for what’s next
    • Feel secure about the future you’re creating

    You don’t have to navigate the dental career lifecycle alone. Work with a partner who understands your world, speaks your language, and is committed to helping you thrive — personally, professionally, and financially.

    Let’s plan your future, together.