A charming smile can open doors and knock down barriers that stand between you and a fuller, richer life.

Insurance. Dental insurance is designed to be a benefit that typically an employer can offer to their employees to assist them with their health care costs. Unfortunately, often more than 35% of the fees go towards administering the plan, (up to 75% for HMO plans).  In addition most plans put limitations, deductibles, waivers, fee schedules, pre-authorizations, waiting periods, and maximums. To top it all off, this often adds unnecessary expenses to the dental office for preparing forms, submitting pre-estimates, waiting for approvals and processing claims. This usually causes less then ideal treatment for you as a patient. Not to mention not allowing for your dental care to be done with the least amount of cost to you, the patient, and the maximum benefit applied to your dental bill.  Most of this money is spend on administration of  paperwork.
The American Dental Association has assisted in establishing a program that allows a patient to select their own dentist, have 95% of the fees be applied towards the dental work (as opposed to 30-45% being wasted on unnecessary insurance administrative costs) and is very cost effective for employers. It is referred to as Direct Reimbursement.  This program is a cost-saving alternative that is quickly becoming the standard of care. If your employer is not using this, you should contact the ADA and encourage your employer to compare what you currently have to the Direct Reimbursement alternative.  This could save both you and your employer hassle and money!

FACTS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT
DENTAL INSURANCE

Dental insurance is rapidly playing a larger role in helping people obtain dental treatment. Since we strongly feel our patients deserve the best possible dental care we can provide and in an effort to maintain a high quality of care, we would like to share some facts about dental insurance with you.

Fact #1 :   You may receive a letter from your insurance company
            stating that dental fees are higher than usual and
            customary fees.
            An insurance company surveys a geographic area, finds the
            average fee, and then takes 75-90% of that fee and
            considers it customary. Included in this fee survey are
            discount clinics which will have lower fees. On top of that
            they discount it by 10-25%.  Any doctor in private practice
            will have fees that are considered higher then average.

Fact #2 :   Dental insurance is not meant to be a PAY ALL, it was only
            meant to be an aid.

Fact #3 :   Many plans tell their insured that they'll be covered "up
            to 80% or up to 100%", but do not clearly specify plan fee
            schedule allowance, annual maximum or limitations.

            We've found that most plans cover about 35% to 65% of major
            services based on the plan's pre-established maximum fee
            allowance which varies from carrier to carrier.

Fact #4 :   It has been the experience of many dentists that some
            insurance companies tell their insured that "fees are above
            the usual and customary fees" rather than saying "our
            benefits don't pay that much!".

            The amount your plan pays is determined by how much your
            employer paid for the plan. The less that was paid for the
            insurance, the less you'll receive. Remember you get back
            only what your employer puts in, less the profits of the
            insurance company.

Fact #5 :   Many routine dental services are NOT covered by
            insurance carriers.  Make sure you review your options
            with your dentist before you signup!

Please do not hesitate to ask us any questions about our office policies. We want you to be comfortable in dealing with these matters and we urge you to consult us if you have any questions regarding our services and/or fees. We will fill out and file insurance forms at no charge.
We will do all we can to assure you of maximum benefits. We can acquire some information regarding your insurance, but for detailed questions, we recommend that you contact your employer regarding the specifics and details of the plan it has contracted on your behalf.

To contact us:

Phone: 323-777-7770
Fax: 208-275-3749
Email: Docdds@Dentistry.com
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