Insurance is a great way to plan for the unexpected. It’s like saving for a rainy day by paying upfront for a portion of unforeseeable costs. Insurance plans are not one size fits all. There’s health insurance, auto insurance, home owner’s insurance, life insurance, and of course, dental insurance!
According to a report from the National Association of Dental Plans (NADP), Americans who have dental benefits are more inclined to visit the dentist regularly, take their children to the dentist, receive restorative care, and experience greater overall health. On the flip-side, the NADP states that those without dental benefits are at higher risk for tooth extractions and dentures, and they are less likely to have restorative care or receive treatment for gum disease.
Tips for maximizing your dental benefits:
- Dental benefits do not roll over year to year. You must use them, or lose them!
- Not all benefits are created equally. Read the fine print for exclusions and limitations.
- Some employers give employees incentives to use their benefits to promote healthy living.
- Your dental treatment should not be dictated by your dental benefits.
Unlike medical, dental insurance focuses mainly on preventative care, which typically covers routine cleanings, exams, and x-rays. Not all benefits are the same; some plans include more coverage than others. Typically, diagnostic and preventative procedures receive the highest coverage, followed by basic procedures (extractions, fillings, and root canals) that get a portion of coverage, and lastly more involved procedures (crowns, bridges, etc.) that have the lowest coverage.
Know the lingo…
- Annual maximum: Remember, there’s no rollover plan! The maximum is the total amount insurance will pay in a calendar year.
- Coinsurance: Typically occurring once the deductible is reached, insurance will pay a percentage of a service, while the patient pays the remainder.
- Copay: This is a fixed amount the patient pays for a service or visit.
- Deductible: Prior to insurance paying a claim, this is the total out-of-pocket responsibility.
- In-network: Insurance plans include providers who accept the benefits.
- Limitations: This consists of the allowable number of times a service can be performed in a specific period of time.
- Out-of-network: These are providers who are not covered by an insurance plan.
- Waiting period: You must be enrolled for a specific period of time before your insurance kicks in.
No insurance? No problem!
We understand that not everybody has access to dental insurance. For that reason, we offer an alternative, our VIP (Very Important Patient) Program. For an annual membership fee paid in full prior to services received, it includes two dental cleanings, routine exams and x-rays, plus an emergency exam.
Keep in mind the correlation between oral health and overall health. At Berger Dental, our goal is to do necessary treatment regardless if the insurance approves the treatment. With half of 2018 left, set aside time to review your dental benefits so you can make the most of them. For example, if you’ve already met your deductible, but haven’t exceeded your annual maximum, consider investing in a procedure you need.
If you want to schedule your next an appointment, call us at 954-344-4488, or complete an online appointment request to schedule your consultation.