On February 6, a bill was introduced to the Illinois House of Representatives seeking to amend the Illinois Dental Practices Act to add provisions related to third-party financing for dental services.

Specifically, House Bill (HB) 4891 mandates that a dentist or their employee must provide a patient with a written treatment plan, including a description of each anticipated service and a good faith estimate of expected charges before arranging for, offering, brokering, or establishing open-end credit, a line of credit, or a loan extended by a third party. If the patient is covered by a dental plan accepted by the dentist, then the treatment plan must indicate the plan’s share of cost for each service. If the dentist does not accept the patient’s dental plan, then the treatment plan shall indicate that the treatment may or may not be covered and the patient has the right to confirm benefits before beginning treatment.

HB 4891 also stipulates that a dentist or their employee may not arrange for, offer, broker, or establish open-end credit, a line of credit, or a loan extended by a third party without providing a form disclosure and the dentist and their employees are prohibited from completing any portion of such an application for financing. Further, the bill prohibits the arrangement, offer, or establishment of open-end credit, a line of credit, or a loan extended by a third party that contains a deferred interest provision.

The bill also addresses the issue of pre-charging for services not yet rendered. It states that a dentist, their employee, or agent may not charge a treatment or cost to open-end credit, a line of credit, or a loan extended by a third party if the treatment has yet to be rendered or costs associated with the treatment have yet to be incurred.

If passed, the law will take effect on January 1, 2025.