Written Agreements

The dental provider and the organization need to compose a written agreement that outlines the relationship between the two entities and respective expectations. This may be in the form of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) or other type of Affiliation Agreement. Some basic items that should be considered are: patient population, location(s) where care will be delivered, who will purchase equipment/supplies and how it will be transported or stored, who will bill for procedures, and how the program will be sustained (financial arrangements). The dental provider and organization need to determine what patient information needs to be shared and how it can be shared while being compliant with HIPAA regulations. The information gathered when addressing the questions posed in Figure 2 will offer some guidance regarding information that needs to be included in a written agreement.