Chairlink Guide
Staff Training · v1.0 · Last updated 2026-10-28
For office managers and front desk teams who read EOBs and post insurance payments. Use it when an EOB comes in and you need to check every line, catch un…
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An EOB is the plan’s written statement after a claim: what it covered, what it paid and what the patient owes. It can be wrong, and a small miss can repeat on every claim from that plan. This guide walks your team through 5 steps for every EOB: Match, Check, Flag, Fix and Track. Inside: a labeled sample EOB with 1 hidden error, 2 checks for every line, an error finder for 14 problems, scripts for calling the plan and writing appeals, posting and refund guidance, and 3 short stories. Facts about EOBs, downgrades, bundling, second plans, write offs and ethics come from public American Dental Association sources, named on the page where they’re used. Lines marked Tip, Office tip or Chairlink advice are our own advice. Dollar amounts in the stories and scripts are made up. Your contracts and your state’s rules decide what can be billed, refunded or paid back, so the guide shows you when your office manager decides. Written and reviewed by the Chairlink Answers editorial team.
The math added up. The money was still wrong.
Jess posts insurance payments. For 3 months, every adult cleaning from 1 plan came in at $85. Her office’s contracted fee for that cleaning is $95. Every EOB added up, so she posted them as printed. After 50 cleanings, $500 the plan owed had been written off. (A made up story, with made up numbers.)
Checking only the math catches math mistakes. It doesn’t catch the wrong price.
2 checks for every line, in this order:
A. The price: in network, is the allowed amount your contracted fee for the work you did?
B. The math: does plan paid plus patient part equal the allowed amount? Out of network, does it equal your full fee?
In the full guide:
• The 5 steps: Match, Check, Flag, Fix, Track
• A labeled sample EOB, with 1 hidden error to find
• An error finder for 14 problems, from wrong fee schedules, downgrades and bundling to $0 lines and payments sent to the patient
• Natural scripts for calling the plan, writing an appeal and telling a patient their bill is on hold
• How to sort a credit on the ledger before anything goes back
Download the Full Guide
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Chairlink Guides are general educational and informational resources. They are not medical, dental, legal, financial, employment or other professional advice.