Where Dental Insurance Falls Short
Dental insurance … isn’t really insurance. Well, sort of.
Intrigued? Because this is a fundamental difference between how we operate here at Cherry Creek DDS vs. how some other dental offices proceed. Both have pros/cons, but it’s an important designation for your decision in choosing a dentist!
What articles say:
A collection of quotes from a variety of publications.
Vox
From a Vox article titled Why dental insurance is so different than health insurance:
““When you look at the dental insurance model, it doesn’t protect the patient from financial risk. It’s the opposite,” said Marko Vujicic, chief economist and vice president of the Health Policy Institute at the American Dental Association. … So it protects the insurer, they’re limited on their exposure.”
“Study after study shows Americans with and without insurance forgo dental visits and treatments because it’s so expensive. That decision can wind up being even more costly — hundreds of thousands of people land in the ER each year because of often preventable dental conditions, costing, by one estimate, $2 billion.”
Consumer Reports
From their article “Think twice before buying private dental insurance.”
“…whether you have an employer-provided plan or a private one, you’ll still pay a lot out of pocket if you need extensive work.
And if you buy dental insurance yourself and wind up needing only basic care, you could end up paying more in monthly premiums than if you paid for the individual services yourself.”
From Forbes:
“…dental policies have their drawbacks, too. Daniel Cho, a dentist in Portland, Oregon, says plans have special rules, such as age limitations for fluoride treatment or missing tooth clauses.
“Insurance typically does not cover 3-D X-rays, moderate or deeper levels of sedation, sleep dentistry and cosmetic work. And your plan may only cover a small portion of the total cost for advanced surgical procedures,” Cho says.”
What this means for you
Dental insurance can be quite limiting, and often isn’t setup in the patient’s best interests. It also incentivizes a dental practice to see as many patients as possible, which can lead to a more rushed experience.
This is why we choose to be an out-of-network dentist for all insurance plans.
Because we don’t want to compromise on:
- Quality of care
- Time spent addressing any and all of your needs
- Allowing you time to ask questions
- Creating the best dental experience possible
Operating as an in-network dentist goes against these principles, and can hinder the level of service and attention to detail you deserve for your teeth.
After all, your dental health impacts your entire health – it’s not isolated! And we feel it’s worth being a bit different to ensure you get the best in everything we can provide.
Sound interesting? We’d love to hear from you – contact us today!