Dental Insurance: February 2008

Saturday, February 16, 2008

Your Dental Health Insurance Plans - What You Need To Know

Taking care of your teeth will, of course, involve some expenses such as dentist fees, paying for dental care products, and so on and so forth. However, you should take note that once your teeth get damaged, you are bound to spend even higher amounts.

So preventing things from decay and other problems is still the best way to go. Along with prevention, you must also have a back up plan in case your dental health does fail. And that is finding some good options for a good dental plan.

Dental Insurance - The Advantages

Paying for a dental plan does have plenty of advantages. The most obvious is that when your dental health fails, you will have the assurance that there is something that would cover your expenses for rectifying your dental issues.

Dental cover exists so that when preventative measures for the care of your teeth does not work or is too late, you will still have a funding solution. Also, decay is not the only teeth problem and accidents may happen that could bring about broken teeth.

With any dental plan, you will not be burdened down by repair or replacement costs.

Another advantage is that there are actually plenty of affordable dental cover schemes out there. Paying inexpensively, even though monthly, for the insurance still beats paying excessively for when the time comes that your dental health suffers.

Also, when needed, you may not have enough cash, at that time, to take care of your dental fees. Finding a good health insurance broker is the key here. As with any other insurance plans, these folks play an important role in the whole process.

To choose properly, you must be inquisitive and clearly understand the terms offered. Start by going through the offered quotes and try to determine which ones are fit for your needs.

Types of Dental Insurance

Speaking of which are fit for you needs, you should also know what plans are available out there.

An individual type of dental scheme is naturally for each individual. This is fit for you if you have only yourself to worry about.

But if you have a family, then it is best to take the dental health of your whole family into consideration as well. If so then the option for you is a good quality and inexpensive family dental insurance.

The terms offered of course would vary depending on several factors such as the brokers and insurance costs.

But no matter the variety, you should opt for as complete a cover as you can afford. Make sure all the possibilities you can think of are covered.

Then you could start browsing the internet for dental cover quotes for individuals and for families as well. There are a lot of online brokers to be found. But of course, as mentioned, you should gather information first so as to make the right choice.

So whether it is personal dental insurance or a family one, make sure it counts when needed.

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(c) 2007 Dental Insurance Guidance. If you want to find the right cover for your dental treatment, there are lots of great value options. You can find out how, right here, on Martin Haworth's fascinating website at http://www.DentalInsuranceGuidance.com

Various Dental Insurance Plans

By : Hans Hasselfors

Shaving nicks and toothaches hurt more than they should. While a nick will vanish in a couple of days, toothache will take your pocket for a spin before it goes away. Believe me, dental care is prohibitively expensive, but still a part of necessary health care and very important.

Here comes dental insurance. Not much in the past it was considered a big company perk, dental insurance has today established itself as a must-have benefit. Even most small companies offer dental insurance today to recruit and retain workers. Dental coverage costs less than 10% of total medical coverage so its affordable and preventive procedures, like cleanings, ensure the overall health of employees, which means a decrease in sick time and increase in productivity.

Various dental insurance plans with numerous variations are available today. You should take proper care and time to consider all options.

Most expensive plans:

Direct reimbursement plans

These plans are the most expensive of the lot. They operate by paying for employee dental coverage from a pool of money set aside by the company for this purpose.

The simplicity of this plan makes it the most effective, the reimbursement is made by a simple formula doing away with the complexity of co-payments, deductibles etc. Even though ADA strongly recommends this plan, this kind of direct dental care may not be affordable by smaller companies.

Least expensive plans:

Managed care plans

Similar to a medical HMO, managed care dental plans need to pay for the treatment through regular co-payments and choose forma pool of dentists to get treated. These plans do various cost-control measures and can more affordable for small businesses.

The co-payment amount varies according to procedure. Preventive procedures are usually performed without co-payment, however advanced procedures will bear higher co-payments.

The choice lies with the company and their financial managers, however great care is recommended in choosing the plan.

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About the Author: Hans Hasselfors is the founder of SubmitYourNewArticle.com. Visit our article directory for varied articles about dental insurance.

Dental Insurance Is A Ripoff

By : Scott Miller

Insurance companies continue to earn massive record profits, there's nothing wrong with that it's the free enterprise system at work, but people are being misled and ripped off. All insurance is not bad, in fact you'd be crazy not to have many forms of insurance, but that certainly doesn't apply to dental insurance.

Homeowners insurance is something I'd prefer not to pay for, we've had it for about 20 years and never filed a claim, but what if your house burns to the ground? Let's just say that your house is worth $250,000 and your homeowners insurance is $2,500 a year. If you pay for 20 years and never have a claim you'd be out $50,000 but if your home is destroyed could you afford to rebuild without insurance?

Insurance is for the most part designed to prevent you from suffering a catastrophic loss, and in our example the $50,000 you spent over 20 years looks like a bargain when your insurance company builds your new home for nothing. But not all insurance is created equal!

Dental insurance is a colossal waste of money. If you have dental insurance, you're probably paying from $600 to $1,000 a year depending on a variety of variables, how many people in your family, deduct etc. So let's say that you don't use it for just 3 years. With an annual premium of $800 you would have paid $2,400 during that time and just like homeowners insurance you never filed a claim, but in year 4 you need some major dental work to the tune of $4,000. What happens now?

You probably won't see this on the NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams but this my friends is the fleecing of America. Over 4 years you would have paid $3,200 in dental insurance premiums and you may be expecting your insurance company to foot the bill, but you'd be wrong. Most dental insurance sold today has a maximum benefit of $1,000 or $1,500, so guess who's going to have to pay $2,500 to $3,000 out of their own pocket?

That would be you the fleecee, sorry, the person who get's ripped off. Dental insurance has almost no value whatsoever which is why many insurance agents refuse to sell it. Homeowners insurance has value, so does car insurance and if you can still afford so does health insurance. They protect you from a devastating financial loss, but dental insurance doesn't do that at all.

A brief history lesson, and I promise it will be brief. Back in the 60's and 70's when dental insurance became commonplace most plans had a maximum benefit of $1,000 or $1,500 which is the same limit that most dental insurance policies have today. The problem is that the cost when you go to the dentist has almost tripled.

Your insurance company charges you a lot more for less, and they raised your deductible too! So why is it that so many still have dental insurance? That's a good question. Perhaps it's because people know that they need to take care of their teeth but they just don't know what to do. Now that you know that dental insurance is a ripoff, you don't have to be taken advantage of anymore.

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Dental Insurance - Important Facts You Need To Know

By : Matthew Hick

Having dental insurance doesn't guarantee that you will be allowed to have the procedures you want and need done. Many dental patients have found some insurance carriers to be difficult to work with, denying claims and causing stress for both the patient and dentist. Here are a few facts about dental insurance everyone needs to be aware of:

FACT #1: Your dentist can't make them pay. Your dental insurance (and the procedures it covers) is determined by a contract made between your employer and your insurance company. When questions arise, your best course of action is to call your human resources department or insurance carrier yourself.

FACT #2: Dental insurance isn't a pay-all, but rather an aid. With most policies now capping at $1,000 a year per patient, dental insurance isn't meant to cover all of your costs like health insurance, but to ease the burden of dental care a bit.

FACT #3: Even if you have 100% coverage, your dentist may not get 100% of his fee, leaving you in some cases, to pay the difference. Most insurance companies survey the area in which your dentist is in practice, calculates an average fee for all service providers in that area including discount dental clinics, take 80% of that fee and consider that the appropriate fee, paying only that amount.

FACT #4: If you and your spouse have policies through your own employer (but with the same carrier), the insurance company is not required to use the second policy to pay for uncovered costs, as is the case if you have coverage from two different carriers. Sad but true, insurance companies can accept payment from two different employers for coverage, but still only give the employee and his/her family members the $1,000 spending limit according to many state's laws. I, however, you and your spouse have different carriers; you can use both insurances to cover most, if not all, of your dental fees.

FACT #5: Many routine dental services are NOT covered by insurance companies.

FACT #6: Your insurance carrier is not responsible for paying for dental work that has not been preauthorized - even if it's an emergency! Be sure that your dentist's office files for any preauthorization are necessary before agreeing to any procedure.

With so much misunderstanding regarding dental insurance coverage out there, it is very important for every patient to carefully discuss their policy and its requirements with their dentist's business manager before agreeing to any expensive procedures to insure that they won't be left paying for the entire bill.

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Dental Insurance Cover - Why It Saves You Money

By : Martin Haworth

First of all, if you really want to save yourself a lot of money in the future, you must take preventative care with your teeth and gums. Having a simple and regular routine for brushing and flossing is required to keep your mouth in its best state. This alone will keep your costs down, so get the information you need and make sure your routine includes dental health.

If you have dental insurance cover, then you will be well placed to discuss a suitable regime with your dentist as part of what you pay for. Whilst this in itself isn't a good enough reason to take out a dental plan, it is a great opportunity for your overall health if you get what's inside your mouth just right!

Paying For Your Dental Treatment - The Best Deals?

The important thing with dental costs is to ensure that you get the best dental insurance cover deal. For some, the small amount of treatment they need (being blessed with excellent teeth and gums), may mean that a dental insurance cover plan isn't that good value, unless they can get a deal that reflects the minimal needs they have (and plans are usually scored to ensure this is still great value).

For those lucky folk, even 'pay as you go' might work well. These people are lucky indeed! For the rest of us, we need to consider whether we take pot-luck and find the cash when we need it, or we plan ahead, make regular payments and rest assured that we are covered.

There is a third way as well. In this form of dental plan, costs are either capped or alternatively, you get a payment towards your total costs, thus taking the sting out of it. As you see, there are a lot of different options and finding one that suits you personally will be your biggest challenge!

When To Buy Your Dental Insurance Cover

You should not wait until dental treatment is absolutely necessary - or you really will pay through the nose. You must get yourself into some form of regular attendance at your dental office so that you can ensure that you start off on the right foot, thus preventing extra expense later on.

For those with kids, it's never to soon to have them visit with their dentist, as early preventative treatment for them can make all the difference to their dental health through their whole life.

This really is when dental insurance cover might seem to come at the most costly time for a family, yet it's so valuable in the years to come.

Dental Insurance Cover - When It Really Pays Its Way

Whilst an early start will help your dental health overall, there may be a time, if you have teeth like most folk, that you need dental treatment for a particular problem.

On these occasions, your attendance will be deemed acute and, as well as the occasional check-up, you will show up at your dental office when something falls out, or starts to decay. This is a real bonus as you sometimes even get cover abroad, when you may be faced with unknown circumstances and something oral that needs urgent attention.

Starting dental insurance earlier rather than later will also keep premiums down. Remember that the monthly costs you may have can depend on an assessment of your dental health, so if you've let things drift, your monthly costs will start from a higher level.

Dental Treatment Costs - Are They Worth It?

The truth is that your teeth and mouth hygiene are vital to you. In fact, it is well known that the health of your mouth is relevant to the whole of your body. So, taking care of it is a vital step to take.

If you are worried about costs, then it is surely better to be able to pay regularly from as soon as you can to keep healthy and keep those big bills down. Dental insurance cover will help you do that.

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(c) 2008 Dental Insurance Guidance. If you want to find the right deal for your dental insurance, there are lots of great value options. You can find out how, right here, on Martin Haworth's fascinating website at http://www.DentalInsuranceGuidance.com

Can I Really Afford Personal Dental Insurance?

By : Thomas Henricks

Many people simply will not purchase dental insurance because they believe the cost is too high relative to the return they will realize on that expense. For people who take great excellent of their teeth, dental insurance can seem like an unnecessary expense.

This notion is far from good logic though. It is highly probable the recommended checkups alone will eat up most of the cost of a typical insurance plan. You may not require any serious maintenance procedures in the immediate future but research will show that most people require several expensive trips to the dentist throughout their lifetime. The probability of some serious issue increases with age. Very few people can go a lifetime without at least a small cavity and periodic cleanings and checkups are recommended for everyone, including those who maintain rigid personal oral hygiene practices.

Can I Get Insurance Without an Employer's Plan?

It is a well known fact that dental insurance can be rather expensive. If you are self-employed, the costs of personal dental insurance can make the decision about purchase, a very difficult decision to make.

Personal dental insurance will undoubtedly cost you more than a group plan offered through an employer. This is because the cost of insurance offered through an employer is partially paid for by that employer. Therefore the cost is shared between the company and its employees and the employees enjoy lower premiums.

Self-employed people must bear the full cost of the insurance and are forced to either go without dental insurance or to pay high premiums for personal dental insurance. The American Dental Association reports that over half of the American population has no dental insurance. Surprisingly, this includes a number of persons whose employers do offer sponsored plans.

Personal Dental Insurance is Widely Available, and Not as Expensive as you Might Think

The insurance industry has recognized the need for affordable personal dental insurance, and there are now several additional options available to you. The most quick and simple way to find a personal dental insurance plan is by conducting some research via the internet.

If you search for personal dental insurance or private dental insurance, you are going to see a huge number of results returned for that search. You must research carefully. Not all of these websites represent legitimate companies. In addition to that, not all of the legitimate companies will offer a plan that fits your budget.

The best way to avoid illegitimate insurance providers is to look for Company names you are familiar with. That is not to say it is wrong to give a new company a chance at your business. You must first do some research to determine definitely that they are a respectable business.

After you have found some companies that appear to offer the package you need and you have established that they are reputable, you may then proceed to price comparisons. Pricing schemes may be immediately available on the internet or you may be required to submit a request for prices.

A personal dental insurance quote should detail your monthly fees, services covered in full and services which are only partially covered. This will allow you to compare the costs of the plan against an estimate of potential dental fees you may be faced with. It is recommended that you do this comparing cost with several companies.

This research should yield a personal dental insurance provider who can give you the coverage you need at an acceptable price. Unfortunately no dental insurance is cheap. However, the monthly premium will be a Godsend when you need emergency dental work and the cost climbs into the category of several thousands of dollars.