Posts
https://www.cnn.com/2018/05/28/health/dental-insurance-partner/index.html
Some Background:
In 1961, dental insurance came in existence and the limit was ONE THOUSAND DOLLARS. But....in 1961 $1,000 bought 8.3 crowns which was a heck of a lot of dentistry. By the time I became a dentist in 1977 the limit was still $1,000 but it only covered THREE CROWNS. Also when I began practicing dentistry in my first office at Tamarac Plaza in Cropseyville, NY, some of the insurance companies paid 92% of our fee.
Today, the limit is STILL $1,000 for the majority of insurance policies and $1,500 for the better policies.
How can YOU relate to this? It is like NOT HAVING A RAISE FOR 57 YEARS that you worked for the same company. Because people don't know and don't care, they blame the dentist for charging too much. THIS IS ABSOLUTELY NOT TRUE unless you are looking at full mouth rehabilitation which is extremely expensive and takes lots of skill, talent and education for the dentist and tens of hours for the patient.
An example: If you have a knee replacement (an implant) , the total cost is ~$65,000 and your insurance probably pays ~$60,000. If you have a dental implant the cost for the entire treatment is about $6,000 and your insurance usually pays little to nothing. Why?
YOUR employer is cheap and refuses to pay more for dental insurance.
My average long time patient can go 10 years without having me fix a tooth. Their out of pocket payment for two cleanings some bite wing x-rays and an exam is probably ~$500 a year with no insurance and $150 a year with insurance.
