dentist charges

How do I know my dentist charges are fair and reasonable? According to my dentist, my insurance company does not provide reasonable compensation for his procedures. How is a patient to know?

I broke a tooth and of course I went to my dentist. He said it had
to be pulled I asked how much will that cost. He doesn't do that I would have to see another dentist for that approximately $600 or so he thought. Then I asked how much would it cost for the replacement tooth approximately $1,300 - $1,500 I told him I would think about it and call back for an appointment.

I called Indiana University School of Dentistry here in Indianapolis,
set an appointment. When I had my teeth check and completely X-Ray total cost $64. The tooth that I was told to have pulled doesn't need to be at all. To completely fix all of the minor problems that I have including brushing my teeth to hard will cost
$1,000 and my insurance will pay half.

The student dentist that I have was a dentist in Russia and Israel
before coming to America. She had to continue her education her
to receive her Dential Licenses. I can say one thing about this
student she gave me one of the most complete examinations I've
ever had.

That's the way I'm saving $$$$$$

Nothing wrong with shopping around for dentists, I would have never thought of that... good thinking!

My wife is a dentist and we have many friends who are dentists. I myself however am a very price sensitive shopper.

This is what I have learned about dentistry:

1. Going to a dental school or a "clinic" with dentist doing residencies can be on of teh best deals around. It is cheap and they are very thorough since it is a teaching envrionment. HOWEVER, you sacrifice convieniince in a big way. Something that might take 30 min in a private office might take many hours and several appointments at a clinic. Also, you might be suprised but they tend to stick with more traditional tried and true techniques in dental schools (less so in residency clinics) so you might not be getting cutting edge stuff esp in terms of cosmetics.

2. Your dentist is 100% correct about insurance companies not giving enough money. Insurance companies are in buisness to make money,,,that is it. They do not care about care quality. There are many proceedures out there which are now 100% accepted and time tested as the best proceedure for a particular ailment. Dental insurance will not cover many of these simply because they are too expensive. Insuance coverage is no measure of quality or need. You shoudl view it more as a supplement.

3. Unless you are poverty level, or have a lot of kids, do not go to a dentist JUST because they accept your insurance. The HMO treatment philosphy is see as many patients in as little time, use the cheapest materials and encourage people to not come in that often. I am serious. It is just a matter of economics.

4. You get what you pay for!!!! Why do you think there can be a price difference? do you think some dentists just make huge wads of cash while others are "nice" people? NO. If you get a cheap price on something it is (usually) a direct indication on the quality.

My wife used to work at a "chop shop" HMO practice and they would force her to use the cheapest crown metal availabl, even though she knew this material had merely 1/3 the expected life span of the better stuff that wasn't much more.

Also, there are a lot of dentist out there who are merely competent. In order to be *Good* you need to do a lot of continuing education, ask your new dentist about their continuing education. If they brush you off they are likely mediocre. If they are good they will be enthusiastic to tell you what they have spent so much time and money learning.

5. Two dentists can give radically different treatment plans on the same patient. It does not mean that one person is incompetant, or ripping you off. People just have different treatment philospohies and ther is no true "right answr"
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I guess my main point here is that you can try to "shop around" but it is not as easy as buying a car. You have absolutely no expertise to judge the quality of dental work. It is very difficulyt for you to comapre apples to apples. Often you get what you paid for.....

My criteria for a good dentist:

1. Look for someone who did a GPR (residency). They are optional in dentistry but more quality oriented poeople do them;
2. Ask about how much continusing education a person has. If they are enthusatsic about this they usally keep up with the latest stuff.
3. while not a hard and fast rule, I would avoid older dentists. They tend to be more outdated (not all of course but it is very common). If you did your education in teh 70 and have not kept up with continuing edu. you are not going to be very good. Also, "hand skills" decline with old age.
Stick with people 1-15 years out of school, unless you have really heard good things.


J

Your better off going with a dental plan for 6 bucks a month. they only have a quick one page fillout form so you get approved quickly and you can save up to 60% off your dental bills.

I'd hate to see Red's teeth now if he waited 5 years for that reply! :eek:

Your better off going with a dental plan for 6 bucks a month. they only have a quick one page fillout form so you get approved quickly and you can save up to 60% off your dental bills.


Huh? Does such a dental plan exist? All the ones I checked out a few years back (I'm self-employed) were roughly twenty bucks a month and covered something like twenty percent of any bill. I think for a higher premium you get one cleaning a year. But I never saw any plan that truly covered you in case of disasters...you're paying most of the procedure.

I gave up dental insurance years ago. I save maybe four hundred bucks a year and a cleaning is around a hundred bucks, which I do once or twice a year, so it's still a deal. Then again, I got nailed last year, needing a $1000 crown.

I tried shopping around for other dentists, but they wouldn't tell me their fees over the phone.

My family plan is only $12/month through my employer and pays for itself after one cleaning. I can chew all the bubblegum I want now!

dingobiscuit, I'm sure your employer chips in a little, too!

As far as "usual and customary"- a dirty little secret I learned from my actuarial colleagues on the Life insurance side is that an employer can buy varying degrees if coverage- one package might provide "usual and customary" that pays the middle of the range that providers are charging in the area, another might pay near the higher end of the range but will cost more. That's why what your insurer pays as "usual and customary" might be a joke compared with reality.

I agree with Unregistered Guest- don't go for cheap if you can afford better. Right now I've got 2 molars missing that will be replaced with implants. I think the dentist (an MD/DDS) will be able to buy a new big-screen TV with the proceeds. But it means that instead of grinding down teeth on both sides of the gap and putting in a bridge that will last maybe 10 years, I'll have an implant that will likely last forever. My insurance actually covers a portion of this but benefits max out at $1,500 a year so it doesn't cover a lot.

For the most part I'm healthy but I've had a lot of fillings, caps and bridgework despite regular dental care- it's a hazard of being over 50 and having had lots of cavities as a child. It's thanks to the good dentists I've had that I've still got as many of my teeth left as I do.

If the dentist has it posted in his office in plain view that you will be charged for missed appointments then you gotta pay it. Some dentists would let it slide but it depends on your dentist. You can refuse to pay it and go to another dentist but he may report you to the credit office although I've never heard of such a thing.
Good Luck

There are national dental fee surveys available that report the median fees charged by state as well as more general geographic regions of the country for most common procedures. Some of those surveys may not be accessible by the public and may require a subscription to a service. When I just Googled it, I pulled up 265K links, so feel free to pick through to see if you can find a public list.

Any professional saying he is not paid enough is always a very subjective issue, since some practitioners have unnecessarily elaborate offices and staffing, not to mention the possibility of lavish lifestyles, that put them in the position of having to focus on only the highest profit margin procedures and push for higher fees on everything. Why don't you ask him what his AGI is? Let him justify it himself.

How do I know my dentist charges are fair and reasonable? According to my dentist, my insurance company does not provide reasonable compensation for his procedures. How is a patient to know?

If you are not sure about your dentist charges to be fair and reasonable then its better that you consult a number of dentists in your area and find out if you are guessing right or not.

If your dentist feels that your insurance company do not provide reasonable services for his procedures then its better that you even have a word with your insurance company regarding this. Dentist may sometime misguide you and refer a company that is offering some incentives to them.

Patients these days should be very alert and do research thoroughly. Asking questions is the best solution if you have doubts.

Regards

Well, I must say that you should go comparing prices on the Internet so you'll get an average range of the cost of the dental procedure you need.

(Getting out of the topic...just a thought in my head)

But if any of you guys are looking into veneers, I'd recommend that you check on dental tourism Philippines. I bumped into a site that offers dental vacation packages on veneers, check it out - maniladentalservices.com

Check out the tropical hardwood veneers, they have an awesome mahogany!