Is dental insurance worth it?

[LittleBirdy]

Hi all. DH is unemployed as of next Friday so I am adding him to my insurance. I know a lot of people maintain that dental insurance isn't worth it - that your premiums + any copays/deductibles cost more than just paying for 2 cleanings a year (assuming that's all you end up needing). I'm trying to figure out if that's the case here, but I've never gone without dental insurance before so I don't really know what things cost in "real" money.

Our premiums would be $11 bi-weekly = $286/year. No kids, so it's just DH and I. Normally we don't have cavities but I do have a watch on one of my teeth... however they have been "watching" it for 2 years. So it's likely we would just have our 2 cleanings, maybe x-rays, and maybe one filling.

Any opinions would be appreciated!

[pandora665]

Well, a cleaning here costs around 70-80 dollars with Xrays, about 60 without. That works out to 270 wth 4 cleanings (2 each) and 2 Xrays (1 each). I'd just call your dentist and ask how much a cleaning with and without Xrays costs. If it's only a few dollars more to keep insurance after cleanings and Xrays, I'd probably keep it. Typically, insurance only covers 50-80% of a filling, but that's still a big savings.

We have 100% coverage for cleaning and Xrays - I don't know what your copay/deductible situation is.

[mnnice]

Call you current dentist and ask them what they would charge for 2 cleanings per year. When we were in transition for insurance I postponed ds2 cleaning because we weren't really sure what was going on they told be that a child's cleaning was $40 if he just saw the hygeinist and that my dentist would only need to see each of us once yearly if we had a hygeinist only appointment in between the two.

Anyway find out what your out of pocket would be with no insurance and no emergency dental and compare from there.

[LittleBirdy]

Thanks!!

I meant to include in my original post - preventive care is 100% covered, no deductible, no co-pay and fillings are paid at 80% with a $150 family deductible.

[mom0810]

I think dental is WELL worth it, but we have union insurance. They pay 100% of our cleanings and any "normal" care... X rays, cleanings, sealants....

And then they pay 90% of everything else, up to $2000/year. So yes, for us, it's worth it. They also pay 100% of our vision each year up to $1000.

[mom0810]

Originally Posted by LittleBirdy

Thanks!!

I meant to include in my original post - preventive care is 100% covered, no deductible, no co-pay and fillings are paid at 80% with a $150 family deductible.

SO well worth it.

[liberal_chick]

I have a kiddo with bad teeth, so for us it is absolutely worth it. We are in the dentist's office about every 3 months, sometimes more, and we've not paid a penny out of pocket.

[EFmom]

It depends on your particular situation.

For me, it's worth it. I had a ton of cavities as a kid. I'm now of an age where many of these teeth are requiring root canals and crowns, usually about one a year. A root canal and crown can cost around $2-3K. My dental insurance picks up about 40% of that, so it's well worth it for me.

[mnnice]

Originally Posted by mom0810

I think dental is WELL worth it, but we have union insurance. They pay 100% of our cleanings and any "normal" care... X rays, cleanings, sealants....

And then they pay 90% of everything else, up to $2000/year. So yes, for us, it's worth it. They also pay 100% of our vision each year up to $1000.

That's way better coverage than most. I think dental care is very important and would find dental care, coverage or not. But in my experience dental coverage for non preventative care has been pretty lame.

My dental insurance paid for half of my extraction, but wouldn't pay for the proceding implant, accompanying x-rays, or crown to go on top of it (because that was cosmetic:. chewing is cosmetic) They would have paid 50% on a crown if it had been in a non implanted tooth (i.e. a root canal), but nothing on my "cosmetic" implant. Can you tell I'm a bit bitter?

[Delicateflower]

Check your reimbursment rates for things like fillings and root canals. That's where it becomes not worth it for us to have expanded dental. (with Delta dental)

[4evermom]

I have something that isn't insurance but is a reduced fee plan. I pay $189 per year for a family plan and then everything is at a lower rate than out of pocket. It pays for itself if anyone needs any work, even if everyone in a family just got 6 months cleanings. Instead of 800-900 for a crown, it's $560, for instance. It's through Dentalplans.com. You choose from different plans. We went with one that cost a little more but also has a discount for prescriptions and vision since out health insurance is a bare boned one without those.

[mom0810]

Originally Posted by mnnice

That's way better coverage than most. I think dental care is very important and would find dental care, coverage or not. But in my experience dental coverage for non preventative care has been pretty lame.

My dental insurance paid for half of my extraction, but wouldn't pay for the proceding implant, accompanying x-rays, or crown to go on top of it (because that was cosmetic:. chewing is cosmetic) They would have paid 50% on a crown if it had been in a non implanted tooth (i.e. a root canal), but nothing on my "cosmetic" implant. Can you tell I'm a bit bitter?

I know, it is better than most. So much so, in fact, that our dentist still does not believe it and calls to check it every time we are there.

But in the long run dental care is worth it, I think.

[misswerewolf]

Yep, absolutely worth it!

[zinemama]

$286 per year is well worth it. You'd hope that twice-yearly cleanings is all you both would need. But stuff happens. Particularly as you get older (believe me...). And the bills for that stuff? Not cheap.

[lmonter]

Uh, check your policy numbers.
Our dental policy?
Only covers $1000/person/year.
Root canals, crowns are only paid half of (until you hit the yearly max, then you're on your own), cleanings are completely covered, x-rays are covered, fillings, it depends on the cost/extent.

So if you need a root canal? Mine was only covered for $600, we paid $700 out-of-pocket since I'd had two cleanings already that year (about $100/ea), x-rays, and a filling or two. Had to wait until the next year/cycle to get the crown for said root canal tooth (I pay $600, ins. pays $600). Which was 4-5 months later. So if you make sure you have a nice buffer in your savings account, you could probably get away without the dental insurance.
Talk to your dentist - see if they'd work with you, and what kind of cash discount they may have if you pay in full before/at the time of service.

Oh, similar thing with optical - ours (and my previous job's insurance) only covers one eye exam every 2 years, and one set of glasses/lenses (only up to $200/pair) every two years. Coughing up $300 every two years isn't as huge a deal as a 4-day hospital bill.

I live in a slightly lower COL area, but still. Typically dental work costs an arm and a leg regardless of the location IME.