Medicare and dental needs.

B

Blessed

Well-known Member
I am not on Medicare yet. I had to go today to get a crown, the dental insurance I have now covered 40% of the cost. This insurance is part of the plan I have through survivor ship of my husband who was employed by the USPS.

I have begun reading about Medicare supplements, but I can also choose to keep this federal medical and dental plan as my supplement to Medicare.

Has anyone been in this situation and what did you decide?
 

I will be looking at this very soon. I am eligible to enroll in Medicare next month.

BTW I went to my dentist for a cleaning yesterday and was told my gum is infected and I will need a root canal and a new crown. I am happy I am on my partner's insurance because it pays 50%. I am still out-of-pocket for $1,100.

I have a guide to Medicare on my desk, and as I go through it I will report back to you as to what I learn.
 
I suppose it depends on the condition of your teeth and your relationship with money.

I choose to pay as I go.

In January I had two teeth removed for $915.00 and ordered a new set of full dentures for $4,400.00.

IMO I'm better off paying out of pocket than I would have been paying dental insurance premiums and deductibles since I retired in 2005.
 

dseag2 said:
I will be looking at this very soon. I am eligible to enroll in Medicare next month.

BTW I went to my dentist for a cleaning yesterday and was told my gum is infected and I will need a root canal and a new crown. I am happy I am on my partner's insurance because it pays 50%. I am still out-of-pocket for $1,100.

I have a guide to Medicare on my desk, and as I go through it I will report back to you as to what I learn.
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Thanks I appreciate any info you can share!
 
Aunt Bea said:
I suppose it depends on the condition of your teeth and your relationship with money.

I choose to pay as I go.

In January I had two teeth removed for $915.00 and ordered a new set of full dentures for $4,400.00.

IMO I'm better off paying out of pocket than I would have been paying dental insurance premiums and deductibles since I retired in 2005.
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My teeth are in good shape. My dental insurance pays for two cleanings and complete Xrays twice a year, I have not have to pay for a major thing in about 9 years. I did have to have an extraction at that time which included a partial bridge. I had a tooth pulled at that time. I had a root canal on that tooth the previous year. I started having horrible migraines after, doctors thought if might be related, so I had the tooth pulled. Hence, the bridge, did not solve anything. The migraines are related to problems in my cervical spine.

No more teeth problems until a couple of weeks ago, while flossing I had a piece of a tooth pop off. The tooth was filled decades ago. No pain, but I knew I would need a crown.

I just have started looking at Medicare and supplements. Wanted to know what others have exprienced in this area. If I should worry about any kind of dental insurance. If it comes to the point I might need to look at dentures of implants.
 
dseag2 said:
I will be looking at this very soon. I am eligible to enroll in Medicare next month.

BTW I went to my dentist for a cleaning yesterday and was told my gum is infected and I will need a root canal and a new crown. I am happy I am on my partner's insurance because it pays 50%. I am still out-of-pocket for $1,100.

I have a guide to Medicare on my desk, and as I go through it I will report back to you as to what I learn.
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I would also appreciate whatever you find. I am on Medicare and don't have separate insurance for dental. If you discover that I can do that, please let me know.

$13,000 of dental work done in the last 2 years...and about another $3000 coming up.

Extractions, root canals, regular fillings and more fun too!!!

Oh, by the way, if you haven't had a root canal in years, FAR less painful than it used to be. Now they just give you a lot more anesthetic.

It hurt less than a regular old filling...
 
Aunt Bea said:
IMO I'm better off paying out of pocket than I would have been paying dental insurance premiums and deductibles since I retired in 2005.
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Same here. Medicare pays for nothing, or almost nothing when it come to dental. For me the only options were buy dental insurance or pay out of pocket. Paying out of pocket almost always costs less in the long run.

The possible difference for you would be if the USPS dental is subsidized. If so you might be better off keeping it, I'd look into that.
 
Alligatorob said:
Same here. Medicare pays for nothing, or almost nothing when it come to dental. For me the only options were buy dental insurance or pay out of pocket. Paying out of pocket almost always costs less in the long run.

The possible difference for you would be if the USPS dental is subsidized. If so you might be better off keeping it, I'd look into that.
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Thanks what I was thinking, to see if I could keep only the dental, maybe I could get a cheaper medical backup. It is good coverage. I do pay for part of it even as a survivor widow benefit. The cost has doubled to me since my husband passed in 2010. My son was even covered on the policy until he was 26. It sounds crazy but is a true fact, Just for only me it has doubld without my son o the policy. If I let the coverage go, I can't go back and get it. That scares me.
 
When we signed up for Medicare and an Advantage program, the Rep. did a search for any dentists that would actually take medicare. There were NONE within 100 miles!

We have been lucky enough to continue coverage with Delta Dental through husband's former employer. As we age, crowns and other work become necessary.
 
My Medicare supplemental plan pays $2,500 a year toward dental at an additional cost of $42 a month over the standard Medicare deduction ($178). It's a 50/50 pay out, but you also get the benefit of negotiated charges.

Example......a crown typically cost $1,700 at my dentist. My insurance negotiates the charge down to $1,100, then the insurance pays $550 and I pay $550.

Added with an edit...my plan is with Liberty dental, they also cover the cost of two cleanings per year.
 
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I have the Careington Dental Discount as part of my Medicare Supplement...it paid over
a third of the cost of a new crown I'm getting and it pays about the same discounts on my semi annual cleanings and annual x-rays. Think they have several different plans you could choose from.
 
Aunt Bea said:
I suppose it depends on the condition of your teeth and your relationship with money.

I choose to pay as I go.

In January I had two teeth removed for $915.00 and ordered a new set of full dentures for $4,400.00.

IMO I'm better off paying out of pocket than I would have been paying dental insurance premiums and deductibles since I retired in 2005.
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I agree. Most dental insurance I've seen really isn't worth much in the end.
 
3-4 years ago they got rid of Delta Dental...which was dental for veterans.
they got rid of it. who needs it.

vets now Have to go thru VA for any dental. this sucks. they usually refer you out but
all in all its a PIA.
 
I have an Aetna "dental plan" through https://www.dentalplans.com/ They make sure to say it isn't "insurance". The year I started not to renew it, I wound up having to have a root canal and get a crown. I'm glad I decided to go ahead and renew because it saved me at least $1,500. I may have paid that much into it over the years but I can't remember how long I had the plan before that work needed to be done. It sure felt good, though, not having to come up with that extra $1,500 immediately and I know I did save a little on cleanings. The plan was averaging around $126 a year. I looked into getting dental insurance through my state health benefits plan but it was just too expensive with a complicated tier schedule for coverage, so I nixed that idea.
 
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I'd suggest you decouple your decision regarding your medical and dental needs. Potential medical related costs are at least a couple orders of magnitude greater than potential dental costs. There are a myriad of options when it comes to Medicare plans, focus on getting the best medical option for you. Once you know that, you can start to investigate dental options. Doing your due diligence regarding dental is a snap compared to medical.
 
I agee, I am researching now to see what my options are. The federal coverage might be better to keep as the medicare supplement as it includes both great medical and dental. Of course when the time comes to sign up for Medicare I will need to go back and double check all the pricing and coverage details I find now. I appreciate everyone that has replied with suggestions to review.
 
I still have zero clue what to do.

Here's the thing...the folks that know how to navigate this world, find it so easy, that they can't easily relate to the folks who can't.

There is no bridge between the two.

It is like a math whiz telling a 5th grader that calculus is easy.

Ok...but that still doesn't help the kid understand calculus.

I had carbon monoxide poisoning. Brain damage. Huge cognitive problems.

I need the "Dummy" version. Otherwise, it just doesn't take...

When I Google Medicare and Dental...what comes up are just a bunch of companies trying to sell you their services. It is not unbiased info.

And the Medicare site itself just says that dental is not covered.


Here's the deal.

Now I can't afford any of this. But if I want to see if my brother can pay for my dental insurance, I think that would technically violate me off of Medicare, as a received financial gain or something.
 
As I mentioned in an early post, there are insurance agents that specialize in helping you navigate Medicare and supplemental plans, at no charge to you. It's in your best interest to contact one.

If you have trouble searching your local area for an agent you can private message me your location and I will help with that. I don't need your name or address, just your town and state, or zipcode
 
@JonSR77
I don't know where you live but that really doesn't matter. Look for a Medicare advisor to explain the different options. For me Medicare advantage works because I enjoy really good health/
My advantage plan includes yearly eye exam no cost. I needed cataract removal $50.00 co pay
Dental 2 cleanings a year no cost. Crown if needed $75.00 co pay.
Primary Care & Specialist doctors no cost.
I have hereditary high cholesterol not real high but still use a statin that cost $6.00 for a 90 day supply.

But as I understand it not all plans are the same. That is why taking time to consult with a Medicare advisor to talk about what would work best for your health needs is your best option.

I just read C50's post. that would be a good start.
 
C50 said:
As I mentioned in an early post, there are insurance agents that specialize in helping you navigate Medicare and supplemental plans, at no charge to you. It's in your best interest to contact one.

If you have trouble searching your local area for an agent you can private message me your location and I will help with that. I don't need your name or address, just your town and state, or zipcode
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Why don't you just run me the parameters by which you find those agents...
 
Blessed said:
I am not on Medicare yet. I had to go today to get a crown, the dental insurance I have now covered 40% of the cost. This insurance is part of the plan I have through survivor ship of my husband who was employed by the USPS.

I have begun reading about Medicare supplements, but I can also choose to keep this federal medical and dental plan as my supplement to Medicare.

Has anyone been in this situation and what did you decide?
Click to expand...

I would advise that keeping yours will probably be best for you.

Regular Medicare only covers very unusual trauma for dental, and I don't think Medicare Advantage plans (the ones that do cover more dental issues) would be as good or any better than what you have, is my guess.

Of course you'd want to research it more specifically.

I would personally prefer and recommend, regular traditional Medicare, with a decent supplement plan, to any (so-called) Medicare Advantage plan.
 


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