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When dental benefits executives gather, the conversation often turns to what, exactly, is going to happen to those benefits moving forward. So when the California Association of Dental Plans recently held its 18th annual conference, "Dental Benefits Down the Road: Who's Driving and Where?", it's no surprise that discussions of the size, shape and makeup of tomorrow's dental benefits dominated the four-day event. The bottom line: Expect dramatic changes in benefits design as patients, providers, and payers wake up to the reality that clinical developments and economic and demographic turmoil have already made yesterday's benefits obsolete.