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US dentists retiring later

According to the American Dental Association Health Policy Institute, most dentists working in the US were either recent graduates or clinicians nearing retirement in 2023. (Image: Olena Yakobchuk/Shutterstock)

Fri. 3 January 2025

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CHICAGO, US: Research from the American Dental Association Health Policy Institute (HPI) shows that young US clinicians are now more likely to practise in groups and less likely to operate their own clinic than they were even a decade ago. According to the institute’s latest research, they may also have to work for longer. New figures from HPI show that the average retirement age of US dentists in 2023 was around 69 years, some four years older than the average clinician who retired in 2001.

According to the research, at 68.9 years, the average retirement age in 2023 was near the pre-pandemic level of 69 years. The average retirement age has been increasing for two decades—having stayed at 64.7 years in 2001—and most dentists are now retiring after the stipulated retirement age. In 2023, just 21% of clinicians retired aged younger than 65, 30% retired aged 65–69 years, 29% retired aged 70–74 years and 20% retired aged 75 and older. 

US dentists are now working for longer. The average career span is currently 41.8 years, meaning that the average dentist works four years longer than he or she did in 2001. Of the clinicians who retired in 2023, 14% had worked for less than 35 years, 48% had worked for 35–44 years, 34% had worked for 45–54 years and 4% had worked for 55 years or more. 

In 2023, the bulk of the US dental workforce was made up of either recent graduates or clinicians nearing retirement, and HPI said that a steady decrease in the latter is indicative of a shift toward a younger generation of dentists. Last year, the average age of US clinicians was 48.8 years, having decreased from 50 years in 2014. 

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