Looking for Dental Insurance as low as possible

D

Denise1952

Well-known Member
because I am low-income. It's too late this time, as I need to spend a lot of my savings to fix a bridge that's gone wacko, and giving me a lot of pain.

But once I get through this, I need to purchase dental insurance. I am wondering if others might help me find something I can handle?

Any help is appreciated.
 

None of this will probably help but nothing to loose throwing it out there-

This is a long shot Denise but noticed you have dark hair. The Indian Health Service has a level of dental care for Native Americans. If you are of Native American Descent, you can stop by there and talk with them. Bring your family tree book if you can. Otherwise I am told there are Dental Schools which can be cheaper but aren't always
If you think it is possible to sign up for Medicaid, depending upon your State, it may come with dental care.

Whatever you need, sometimes it is worth it to travel. We live 1 hr from the California/Nevada border and I hear Dental is cheaper in Nevada. Most things overall are cheaper up there so no surprise. Good luck to you :)
 
Outdoorsygal said:
None of this will probably help but nothing to loose throwing it out there-

This is a long shot Denise but noticed you have dark hair. The Indian Health Service has a level of dental care for Native Americans. If you are of Native American Descent, you can stop by there and talk with them. Bring your family tree book if you can. Otherwise I am told there are Dental Schools which can be cheaper but aren't always
If you think it is possible to sign up for Medicaid, depending upon your State, it may come with dental care.

Whatever you need, sometimes it is worth it to travel. We live 1 hr from the California/Nevada border and I hear Dental is cheaper in Nevada. Most things overall are cheaper up there so no surprise. Good luck to you :)
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Thank you but I don't have Native American heritage. Nice of you to put it out there though;) I think it will be something AARP has available. I found some things on that I'll look into tomorrow. Just need to make it through the next 3 days with this issue until Monday when the dentist I want to see is back. And even then, not sure he will take me in very soon, who knows. I can go to the emergency room if I can't handle it anymore, so far, Aleve is helping me through;)
 

Denise I have a Humana Medicare Advantage Plan instead of regular Medicare. They offer a dental plan for around 16.00 a month. It pays $1500.00 a year. I have a lot of work to be done and will cancel it after I am through. When I was working all of our dental plans paid 1000.00 a year so this Medicare plan pays a little more.
 
Thanks terry, I will look into that since I have medicare now. The lowest I've found so far is with AARP and its 50 a month but it's lacking.
 
Denise I searched a ladies thread from City Data. She lived in Crescent City for years until about 6 months ago and moved to S.F. I've emailed you her name on City Data.

Here is a copy of one of her posts I searched out- It is from June 2017

I can give you one little example of how living in a wealthier county does make a difference for health. I was living in Del Norte County, which is one of the poorest counties in CA. I have Denta-Cal (part of Medi-Cal, which is basically Medicaid in CA). But, even though there is a Denta-Cal clinic in Crescent City, where I was living, they were not taking new adult patients and didn't expect to ever do so.

The nearest clinic I could go to for dental care was in Redding. A four hour drive each way, and the gas to get there and a hotel room, unless I was up to doing it in one day.

Next option was to go sign in at the local clinic at 8:00 a.m. and hope they could squeeze you in, if there was a cancellation. I needed a tooth pulled that was killing me, and I was able to get it pulled - after waiting 5 hours in the waiting room. So, forget about getting cleanings or check-ups or anything that wasn't dire.

So, needless to say, my dental care has seriously suffered for the last 3 1/2 years. I'll be able to now make an appointment locally, because I'm in a county that can afford to pay enough dentists. So, I'll be getting check-ups and cleanings and some new crowns, etc., that have been sorely needed for a few years.

In Del Norte County, you regularly see people missing front teeth. I'm talking the clerks at the Walgreens or at Home Depot, etc. And that's mainly due to a lack of resources. They probably qualify for the local clinic, but can't be seen, can't afford to drive 4 hours each way to get their teeth taken care of, etc.

I guess if you could afford to fly wherever you needed to go, that would work. Or if you just wouldn't take care of your teeth anyway...

But, there are lots of other resources in a wealthy county, too, that are not available in poor counties, in all different segments of health care. It does make a difference in my personal health to have these resources where I live.
 
I wish I could offer you some positive advice Denise, but I have been researching dental coverage for 3 years now and haven't found anything worthwhile. Last year I took a Humana plan for $23 a month because I got a good sales pitch. My fault for not investigating thoroughly. Come to find out, it covered two cleanings a year and a couple of xrays.....that's it, very basic. Earlier this year I broke a tooth and needed a temporary crown. The plan covered $18 out of a $325 charge. My dentist, a very kind man, warned me that switching to better coverage would probably not cover my pre-existing condition (temporary crown). What I've found is that he was correct.....pre-existing conditions are not covered by any insurance I've looked into. Not only that, even "better" plans that charge $50 a month or more have an annual limit of $1500. I expect in the future, because of prior tooth loss, I will need bridges or implants or ultimately dentures. Doing the math, if I pay at minimum $600 a year for insurance, and I am paying out of pocket well over the $1500 annual limit, my conclusion is that dental insurance is not worth the expense. If anyone reading this has a differing opinion or a great dental plan to share, I am all ears.
 
deesierra said:
I wish I could offer you some positive advice Denise, but I have been researching dental coverage for 3 years now and haven't found anything worthwhile. Last year I took a Humana plan for $23 a month because I got a good sales pitch. My fault for not investigating thoroughly. Come to find out, it covered two cleanings a year and a couple of xrays.....that's it, very basic. Earlier this year I broke a tooth and needed a temporary crown. The plan covered $18 out of a $325 charge. My dentist, a very kind man, warned me that switching to better coverage would probably not cover my pre-existing condition (temporary crown). What I've found is that he was correct.....pre-existing conditions are not covered by any insurance I've looked into. Not only that, even "better" plans that charge $50 a month or more have an annual limit of $1500. I expect in the future, because of prior tooth loss, I will need bridges or implants or ultimately dentures. Doing the math, if I pay at minimum $600 a year for insurance, and I am paying out of pocket well over the $1500 annual limit, my conclusion is that dental insurance is not worth the expense. If anyone reading this has a differing opinion or a great dental plan to share, I am all ears.
Click to expand...
a.jpg
 
Outdoorsygal said:
Denise I searched a ladies thread from City Data. She lived in Crescent City for years until about 6 months ago and moved to S.F. I've emailed you her name on City Data.

Here is a copy of one of her posts I searched out- It is from June 2017

I can give you one little example of how living in a wealthier county does make a difference for health. I was living in Del Norte County, which is one of the poorest counties in CA. I have Denta-Cal (part of Medi-Cal, which is basically Medicaid in CA). But, even though there is a Denta-Cal clinic in Crescent City, where I was living, they were not taking new adult patients and didn't expect to ever do so.

The nearest clinic I could go to for dental care was in Redding. A four hour drive each way, and the gas to get there and a hotel room, unless I was up to doing it in one day.

Next option was to go sign in at the local clinic at 8:00 a.m. and hope they could squeeze you in, if there was a cancellation. I needed a tooth pulled that was killing me, and I was able to get it pulled - after waiting 5 hours in the waiting room. So, forget about getting cleanings or check-ups or anything that wasn't dire.

So, needless to say, my dental care has seriously suffered for the last 3 1/2 years. I'll be able to now make an appointment locally, because I'm in a county that can afford to pay enough dentists. So, I'll be getting check-ups and cleanings and some new crowns, etc., that have been sorely needed for a few years.

In Del Norte County, you regularly see people missing front teeth. I'm talking the clerks at the Walgreens or at Home Depot, etc. And that's mainly due to a lack of resources. They probably qualify for the local clinic, but can't be seen, can't afford to drive 4 hours each way to get their teeth taken care of, etc.

I guess if you could afford to fly wherever you needed to go, that would work. Or if you just wouldn't take care of your teeth anyway...

But, there are lots of other resources in a wealthy county, too, that are not available in poor counties, in all different segments of health care. It does make a difference in my personal health to have these resources where I live.
Click to expand...

All 100% true.
 
deesierra said:
I wish I could offer you some positive advice Denise, but I have been researching dental coverage for 3 years now and haven't found anything worthwhile. Last year I took a Humana plan for $23 a month because I got a good sales pitch. My fault for not investigating thoroughly. Come to find out, it covered two cleanings a year and a couple of xrays.....that's it, very basic. Earlier this year I broke a tooth and needed a temporary crown. The plan covered $18 out of a $325 charge. My dentist, a very kind man, warned me that switching to better coverage would probably not cover my pre-existing condition (temporary crown). What I've found is that he was correct.....pre-existing conditions are not covered by any insurance I've looked into. Not only that, even "better" plans that charge $50 a month or more have an annual limit of $1500. I expect in the future, because of prior tooth loss, I will need bridges or implants or ultimately dentures. Doing the math, if I pay at minimum $600 a year for insurance, and I am paying out of pocket well over the $1500 annual limit, my conclusion is that dental insurance is not worth the expense. If anyone reading this has a differing opinion or a great dental plan to share, I am all ears.
Click to expand...

Thanks Dee, only now that I am having issues, am I finding out how bad things are:( I heard about dental insurance not being worth it before, and I believe what you say is "sadly" true.
 
I'm afraid this might be more than just a tooth issue. I have no swelling, but the gums/teeth are hurting even over on the other side, and above in my upper gums. I just won't know until I can see a dentist. I'm hurting too much to be able to communicate all that is going on with me, but lastnight when I had some relief from Aleve, I decided to search around and see about dental insurance so I could see one of the dentists in this town that don't take denti-cal. I was ashamed to let people know I get that because my income is so low. I hurt too much to give a damn what people say or think about low-income folks though.
 
Advice from someone who has very nice teeth, has had a lot of work done, and is very conscientious about dental matters:

Forget about dental insurance. find a college/university that has a dental school and have the work done there. (or, if you do get dental insurance the colleges do honor it.)

- they are VERY thorough
- they do beautiful work that is double checked
- best of all the price is 1/2 (or less) what a private dentist charges

I'm fortunate to still have all my own natural teeth, lots of crowns, but no bridges/partials.

You will still have to pay upfront, and the appointments are time-consuming, but (imo) it is well worth it. Even if you have to travel a bit, I'd look into it and make some calls.
 
applecruncher said:
Advice from someone who has very nice teeth, has had a lot of work done, and is very conscientious about dental matters:

Forget about dental insurance. find a college/university that has a dental school and have the work done there. (or, if you do get dental insurance the colleges do honor it.)

- they are VERY thorough
- they do beautiful work that is double checked
- best of all the price is 1/2 (or less) what a private dentist charges

I'm fortunate to still have all my own natural teeth, lots of crowns, but no bridges/partials.

You will still have to pay upfront, and the appointments are time-consuming, but (imo) it is well worth it. Even if you have to travel a bit, I'd look into it and make some calls.
Click to expand...

EXCELLENT advice! ALL dental insurance is laughably horrible! I've had it for most of my life, but only to guard against something coming along of a catastrophic nature. For routine work, every plan I've ever had covers two cleanings a year and that's it! For anything else, you will pay the lion's share of the cost and the insurance will kick in a few dollars, total! Hopefully, I'll never have to see what happens after a truly catastrophic dental episode. I know it wouldn't be pretty!
 
Denise have you looked into CareCredit? I was encouraged by a friend a few months ago to apply for it so I did.....and am glad. It was a really easy process, I was approved over the phone in just a few minutes time. It has allowed me to not have to take a chunk out of my savings to cover health or dental expenses, and even veterinarian expenses for my fur kids. The great thing about it is if you can pay it off within a specified time frame, there are no interest charges. I haven't found a care provider yet that doesn't accept it, but I'm sure there are some that don't. I'm so sorry you are having such mouth pain. It just makes life miserable :miserable:
 
Thank you again dee I will check on that for sure!! I'm still waiting to get in and it's been 2.5 hours so far. Lots of emergency and few doctor s
 
applecruncher said:
Advice from someone who has very nice teeth, has had a lot of work done, and is very conscientious about dental matters:

Forget about dental insurance. find a college/university that has a dental school and have the work done there. (or, if you do get dental insurance the colleges do honor it.)

- they are VERY thorough
- they do beautiful work that is double checked
- best of all the price is 1/2 (or less) what a private dentist charges

I'm fortunate to still have all my own natural teeth, lots of crowns, but no bridges/partials.

You will still have to pay upfront, and the appointments are time-consuming, but (imo) it is well worth it. Even if you have to travel a bit, I'd look into it and make some calls.
Click to expand...
I haven't tried the dental school route and like you say that may be a very good way to do it.

The dentist I had for decades retired before I did and for various reasons in the last ten years I have been to at least four different dentists. The one I'm using now seems very expensive but very good, good enough that all in all it is probably less expensive to use him. He knows what he is doing and correctly identified a problem with a crown (that I had had for a decade or two?) that all the others missed the diagnoses on. He did high definition photography on every tooth in my mouth from every angle there is and could show me exactly what I was dealing with... it was like night and day compared to all the other dentists I have ever used. Dentistry is one area where quality work is what you want.
 
As a general statement dental insurance sucks. The dental HMO plans pay the dentist virtually zero and he/she offers services at suck a low rate that quality tends to suffer. The dental PPO have long waiting periods for anything other than "minor" issues that coupled with the maximum reimbursement ($1,000-1,500) you wind up trading dollars with the insurance company at best.

My suggestion is to do one of two things:

1) As your dentist if they are a provider for Delta Dental PPO. Is so, ask if they will allow you to pay 100% of the Delta allowable. Generally will save about 1/3 off the regular rates with no waiting periods nor maximum benefit. And there is no $40-60 monthly premium just to get back 50% of the cost of a crown.

2) Go to www.californiadiscountdental.com. (This works in other states as well). This program allows you to access PPO rates for thousands of dentists for about $100/yr. Your services are pre-priced.

While neither of these options are insurance you do save about $900 over the 18 month waiting period just to save $400 on a crown. It can be a much better deal.

Rick
 

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