Dental Insurance Review &
FAQ
General Information about Dental Insurance
Should I get Dental Insurance?
What kinds of plans are there?
How much coverage should I get?
Dental Insurance Catches
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General Dental Insurance Information
Dental insurance is a touchy subject, most people don't want to talk
about it because of the sometimes negative nature of dentistry. Many
of us fear the dentist and the pain they inflict on us, but the fact
is those who don't take dental insurance seriously are the ones who
suffer the most. We hate to admit it, but we all get old, our
teeth get older faster and the reality is every year that goes by the
cost of dental work tends to go up, not down and that is because as
we get older we
tend to need more and more dental work done. Individuals who do not
go to the dentist for long periods of time are the ones who overall
tend to suffer the most over the course of their lives. While dental
insurance is certainly recommended, paying to much for it is unacceptable.
Dental insurance is designed to cover a dentist's
visits, braces, mouth x-rays, and other services supplied
by dentists. Dentist visits are not covered in some health
plans so you may have to add in separate dental insurance.
There are five different kinds of dental plans that will
be covered in this section under the "what should it cover"
section. Maybe your company covers your dental insurance,
but not enough or maybe you could work an option to get
paid more money and cover your own insurance. Is your spouse
covered fully? All digressions aside if you, your friends,
family do not have coverage you are just waiting for a potential
disaster and people who don't take dental insurance seriously
end up paying more than they ever imagined when it comes
time to pay the dental bill. Medical malpractice suits are
forcing doctors bills to go through the roof. Make the smart
choice and get extra dental insurance in the long run it
will save you a lot of extra money. Shop around and see
what is out there, take the time to look and you will pleasantly
surprised at what is available out there regarding dental
insurance, options and costs. The more time you spend exploring
all your options the more money you will save over your
life time!
Should I get Dental Insurance?
This is a question everyone has to ask. Is dental insurance worth
the cost? To figure this out simply calculate out how much you would
spend in a year on the insurance and then calculate how much you would
save on your dentist visits in a year. If it turns out that you would
be saving money, then you should go with the dental insurance, but if
you would be paying more then you shouldn't go with it unless you are
planning to increase dental spending soon by getting braces or something
like that. The answer should I get dental insurance is a resounding
yes if you consider the money you will save over a life time, but given
a year to year view point the answer above is the right solution. Even
if you don't get dental insurance you never know when a dental situation
will sneak up on you. Weigh all your choices carefully, research all
your options and make an informed decision. If you don't know the exact
amount you would save then you can estimate it by taking what you spend
in a year on dentist visits and taking half of that and that is about
what you should save. You might save a little more or less than that
but it is a good estimate. Take the time now to explore your options
and see what is out there. Do the math, what has doctors visits cost
you on average and multiply that number by 2 as you should see a dentist
2x a year to keep your overall long term costs down by addressing dental
issues as soon as possible.
Dental Insurance
Terminology
What kinds of plans are there?
 There
are several different kinds of dental insurance and options, so I am
going to list the most common ones and what it should cover.
Indemnity Plans: They generally
have high deductibles and cover 50-80% of the cost of each visit,
average monthly cost $15 to $25, you can pick your own dentist, these
companies are regulated by state insurance departments.
Dental HMOs:
Covers health care though specific dentists, you may be
required to make co-payments, free preventive or routine care, may
have an enrollment fee, average monthly cost $5 to $15, companies
tend to be regulated by state insurance department.
This is not insurance, the managing organizations have negotiated
with local dentist offices for discounts, with these plans there are
no exclusions for pre-existing conditions, and patients receive immediate
coverage with no waiting periods. Take a look and see what is available
here regarding your dental options. Sometimes a discount is the way
to go, this way your dental bills are at least manageable.
Direct Reimbursement Plans:
This is not insurance, with this type of plan you go to the dentist and
pay the full charge then you bring the receipts back to your employer
who reimburses all or part of the cost to you.
How much coverage should I get?
You should get enough coverage that it will cover your current
dental expensive plus about $1000-$4000 (worst case scenario) extra
in case you were to need braces or have a sudden dental problem that
would need to be covered. Also, make sure you get as low a deductible
as possible. The reality is you need to look around, shop around do
research, look at your family history regarding
their dental issues, look and consider your own dental issues and ultimately
factor in that your dental bills are most likely going to go up as you
get older.
Dental Insurance Catches
There are several catches to look out for. One is preexisting conditions
may not be covered, meaning if you already had a dental problem when
you signed up for the plan the company would not pay to help you fix
the problem. The other is, waiting periods. It may take a certain amount
of time before certain things are covered by your plan or you get reimbursed.
Please take the time right now to look at your options and shop around,
read, learn and come back here and check out what is available on our
site, directory and forum.
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