Blaine Carroll is president of Chewsi, an app launched in 2017 by Providence-based First Circle Inc., a technology firm owned by Delta Dental. The platform has since expanded across 10 states, including Rhode Island.
Carroll discusses Chewsi’s growth and shares why he believes the app benefits both patients and dentists.
PBN: You last spoke to PBN in March 2019 about Chewsi’s growth. At the time, you were eyeing a national expansion, having already launched in Rhode Island, Massachusetts and parts of New Hampshire and Connecticut. Where else in the U.S. is the platform operating now?
CARROLL: As you mentioned, we launched Chewsi in Rhode Island back in 2017 and have a large number of Ocean State dentists participating. Members across the state have been enjoying the benefits of Chewsi and saving on their dental care. Rhode Islanders have saved hundreds of thousands of dollars on their dental care since our launch.
Since we last spoke, Chewsi’s traction has grown beyond Rhode Island, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Connecticut. Chewsi members are now seeing great savings on their dental care in New Jersey, New York, Florida, Iowa, Hawaii and Virginia. We continue to explore new markets and plan to have additional states launched in the weeks ahead.
Today, Chewsi members in numerous states have saved a total of $1.5 million on their oral care. Our corporate headquarters remain in Providence and we continue to expand into new markets each year. Our plan is to continue to grow Chewsi throughout the U.S. so it can help more Americans save on their dental care. We look forward to continuing to branch out into new markets in order to bring our plan to fruition.
PBN: How many Rhode Island dentists are part of the platform? Do you expect that number to grow as Chewsi becomes more well-known?
CARROLL: Roughly half of the 550 dentists in Rhode Island now offer Chewsi to their patients in order to help them save on the dental care recommended by their dentist. We have a strong presence in the state and continue to add more dentists in Rhode Island each day. We have a great mix of general dentists, as well as specialists, located throughout the state, so regardless of where you live or what services you need, you can find a great dentist who participates with Chewsi.
We are proud of the progress we’ve made in Rhode Island, and Chewsi continues to work hard every day to further build our network of dentists – both in Rhode Island and in other geographies.
PBN: How many members does Chewsi have and what is required to become a member?
CARROLL: More than 150,000 people have downloaded Chewsi since our launch. Many of these people are not only using Chewsi for themselves but also for other family members such as their children and spouse, as well as elderly parents who need dental care.
Becoming a Chewsi member is easy. All you need to do is download the Chewsi app on either your Apple or Android smartphone and register. That’s it. It’s free to register and we don’t charge our members a monthly or annual fee. Once you register for Chewsi, you gain immediate access to significant savings on all dental services. Users have saved an average of 24% on their dental services and only pay for the care they need, when they need it. And, unlike traditional dental insurance and discount plans, there’s no waiting periods, limitations or exclusions.
PBN: According to Chewsi, it has saved members about $1.3 million on dental services since its launch in 2017. How do dentists benefit from signing on?
CARROLL: We are very proud that the dentists that are offering Chewsi to their patients have helped them save more than $1.5 million over the past couple years. We’ve found dentists who enroll with Chewsi want to help patients get the care they need by helping them save on their dental care. Financial challenges can be a big reason why patients don’t proceed with the care dentists recommend, especially in these difficult times. In fact, a recent survey from Dr. Bicuspid, an industry publication, found that 56% of all respondents said they simply couldn’t afford their dental treatments. By enrolling with Chewsi, dentists are able to offer a level of savings to their patients, which helps patients agree to proceed with the treatment they need. We offer competitive reimbursement rates to our providers, so it’s really a win-win for the patients and the dentists.
PBN: As we know, the COVID-19 pandemic brought layoffs and job loss across the country. With so many people no longer under their employer’s insurance, did you see an uptick in Chewsi use over the past year?
CARROLL: Even before the pandemic, there were a significant number of individuals who did not have dental coverage. In 2017, the National Association of Dental Plans estimated 74 million Americans had no dental insurance. Another industry source estimated that in 2020 alone, 6 million more Americans lost dental coverage due to the pandemic. These market estimates don’t include the many Americans who have traditional insurance plans that may not cover all of the services they need. We created Chewsi to address these gaps and help everyone with access to affordable dental care – whether they were insured, uninsured, underinsured or anything in between.
Making affordable dental care easy, accessible and transparent are pillars of our company. We hear from patients daily about the impact their Chewsi savings have had on their lives and this is what drives us every day to continue to grow Chewsi. We continue to see strong demand in the market for Chewsi to help users save on their dental care and we look forward to working with our great dentists to serve many more Americans in the months and years to come.
Elizabeth Graham is a PBN contributing writer.
