Bracken Killpack
WSDA Executive Director

Over the last several years, WSDA leadership has been discussing the need to radically change our membership model. We have talked about shifting away from “one size fits all” toward a more flexible model, allowing each dentist to align the cost of membership with their personal perception of what membership in organized dentistry is worth to them.

After years of articulating this need for change – as well as a lot of planning and preparation – it’s time for action. The first iteration of our reimagined membership model launches in 2025, and we are excited to finally share the details with you.

In almost every instance, the amount that dentists will pay for membership in 2025 will be LESS than what they paid in 2024. Here’s the breakdown of 2025 membership.

• 1st Year Out of Dental School: In the first year after dental school, all dentists will pay $0 for 2025 Tripartite (ADA, WSDA, local dental society) membership.
• 2-5 Years Out of Dental School: All dentists two to five years out of dental school will pay no more than $37 per month ($444 annually) for 2025 Tripartite membership. This is a 60-75% reduction year-over-year from the full cost of 2024 membership.

• 6+ Years Out of Dental School: All dentists six or more years out of dental school (6+) will have a base 2025 Tripartite membership cost of no more than $104 per month ($1,249 annually). This is an 18% reduction year-over-year from the full cost of 2024 membership.
• 6+ Years Out of Dental School with WDIA Appreciation Discount: All 6+ dentists who use Washington Dentists’ Insurance Agency (WDIA) as their agent for professional liability insurance will get an additional $250 off their base 2025 membership. The WDIA Appreciation Discount reduces the cost of 2025 Tripartite membership to no more than $83 per month ($999 annually). This is a 30% or more reduction year-over-year from the full cost of 2024 membership.

As you can see, the first phase of our reimagined membership model is all about bringing the cost of Tripartite membership down considerably. In addition to reducing the base membership rate, we are also eliminating the fee that we have previously charged for dentists to pay for their membership in monthly installments.

Author Jim Collins introduced “The Flywheel Effect” into business literature a few decades ago. According to Collins:

And we expect that these changes are just the beginning. 

For the next several years, WSDA is going to be under the proverbial microscope as we roll out our reimagined membership model. Unfortunately, there seem to be a number of individuals and organizations watching and rooting for us to fail because they are too attached to maintaining the status quo or would prefer to see our organization in a diminished state. 

While talking about these changes with dentists from across the state, it has been heartening to hear about the excitement for this model, especially from our youngest members. We are confident that we must take this action, and that this approach is our best path for the future.