A new bill signed into effect March 18, 2010 offers employers two tax breaks for qualifying new employees hired in 2010.  The first exempts companies from their share of Social Security payroll taxes, usually 6.2% of a workers wages, when they hire a new employee that was unemployed for at least 60 days prior.  The second tax break gives companies an additional $1000 or 6.2% of the wages paid to the employee in 2010 (whichever is less) for each employee retained for a full year.  According to Obama, Section 179 was created to assist small business owners who might not want to hire on a new employee during these tough economic times. The legislation also extends provisions to allow small businesses to write off as much as $250,000 of their capital expenditure in 2010.  To learn more about Section 179, click here or contact your qualified tax preparer to determine what tax credits may be available to you.

Just want to let everyone know about our FREE seminar we are having next week regarding the recent changes in HIPAA regulations and how to make sure your office is compliant.  We will also discuss how to make sure all your technology (backups, e-mails, internet) is aligned with these regulations. Here is more info and a link to register.

I recently read a great article that explains some of the ways you can promote your website after it has been posted.  I have blogged about some of these steps before such as the process of choosing a domain name that is easy to remember, applies to your content, etc.  This article also suggests locking down all the variances of that domain name.  For example if you lock down www.firstcoastsmiles.com, then you should also register firstcoastsmiles.net.  Another great point the article makes is cultivating your current patient base.  I always encourage my clients to do promotions on the website that drive current patients to the site and give them patients the opportunity to refer their friends and family to the site.  Some examples are gift basket giveaways that patients have to sign up for on the website or a discount coupon for first time patients they can print from the website.  Take a look at the article in full to read more .

“The ADA is recommending that dentists review and revise their Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) compliance programs and make any necessary changes to their Notice of Privacy Practices and to Business Associate Agreements”- www.ada.org The new HITECH rules deal with sending electronic patient information.  Most offices do this now to increase efficiency with filing insurance claims and other processes.  We are also recommending all our clients review their HIPAA policies at this time.  Please check our website in the upcoming weeks for information about an upcoming seminar we are holding to discuss these new rules.

I feel like we have beaten this issue like a dead horse, but it couldn’t be more important.  Backing up your data as frequently and as reliably as possible can – and probably will eventually for most of you – save you lots of time and heartache in the long run.  Just simply having the peace of mind that your data is being backed up on a regular basis without your time and attention is worth the expense. We are now offering our new BDR backup and disaster recovery system..  It is a great in office and remote backup option.  We actually had a client that used the in office backup today to restore data that had been corrupted and it took 15 minutes to get them back where they needed to be…without this solution it could have taken days, and they would have lost at least half day’s data. The BDR backs up your office data every 15 minutes to a separate skeleton server in your office and it also sends the information to 2 remote data centers in the United States in case of a physical disaster at your office.  If you want more information call us at 904.443.0095!  This is a MUST HAVE for all dental offices!!

Many offices don’t realize that Dentrix offers a service where you can link from your current custom website to their e-service links like patient information forms or other patient info. All you need to do is add the link they give you to your website. Here is a sample of a site we host that has the links added: https://myalexanderdental.com/ If you need any help integrating this feature with your website…give us a call! 904.443.0095