Dental Insurance

[SumDay]

I searched the forums and didn't see anything on this topic since last year, so I'm starting a new thread.

15 days to go until I retire and lose my employer provided dental coverage We can get "retiree dental" through Met Life (current provider) but premiums are $100 a month for both of us and the max payable a year is $1500 each. So, that's $1200 of premiums for $3000 of annual coverage for the two of us. However the nice part to me are the negotiated fees you get when using an in-network dentist, which ours is. Preventative is covered at 100%, fillings & periodontal is 70% and Major is 50%, with a $75 annual deductible for everything but preventative. No pre-existing condition limitations.

I'd rather pay 50% of their negotiated rate for a crown than 50% of their full, off the rack rate. DH is a dental nightmare, so I'm kind of torn. So that's my option 1.


Option 2: Our dentist offers a "savings program" for $149 a year, which gets us cleanings, exams & x-rays for $117 rather than $209. A crown would be $737 vs $1170, and a filling would be $95 vs. the full $171. And a specialist comes with a 20% discount.


I feel like I've got two decent options, and while not as nice as my $36 dollar a month employer rate, I feel pretty lucky to have these options available.

What would you do? What do you do?

 

[Sojourner]

In your case, I'd probably go with option #2. I think private dental insurance is a pretty bad deal, unless you reasonably expect to have some major work done within the next year that will be covered... but not too much work, which will exceed the low yearly maximum.

I've been semi-retired for about 4 years, and I've had no dental insurance at all in that time. I worked out a deal directly with my dentist (who runs a small, independent practice) that I would pay cash for all services, and my routine cleanings would cost $85 without X-rays and $115 with X-rays. For other work, like small fillings, we talk about the price ahead of time and negotiate a reasonable rate. For example, I recently had a small cavity filled for the grand total of $120.

 

[Aerides]

Most dental insurance (even employer based) is really just a discount plan. We have a plan now like your #2.

 

[MRG]

What happens if your dentist leaves?

 

[SumDay]

What happens if your dentist leaves?

He's in a group, and the group is in the plan. We like the others and have seen them in an emergency.

 

[USGrant1962]

We paid $275 for two years of Aetna Dental Discount plan for the family. All good so far.

 

[Zona]

We have always paid out of pocket, but neither of us have needed anything major like a root canal or implant. Our dentist charges $85 for exam/cleaning and tacks on $40 for yearly xrays. Quicken tells me that we've spent $6K total on dental over the past 10 years, with the highest year being $1900 when we paid out of pocket for two crowns at $850 apiece. I can't see us ever buying private dental.

Of course YMMV, if you need major work done or want more frequent cleanings.

 

[mickeyd]

Get all of your dental work done ASAP and hen cancel the coverage when on COBRA.

 

[CaptTom]

I have yet to find a plan which really looks worth it. For the money, the coverage always seems too weak, the max payouts too low, and/or the covered procedures too restrictive.

I did what mickeyd suggested; made an appointment a few months before my planned retirement date, to get everything done which might be needed. Dentist then went and retired before me! His replacement did what I consider sub-par work, then postponed my last appointment until just before I retired, at which point she decided I should come back for some more major work in a month or two.

Too late! And she wouldn't see me sooner. She never told me what that work was supposed to be, but over two years later, it seems like it may have been unnecessary.

Moral of the story: Finding a good dentist is more important than finding a good plan.

 

[athena53]

Get all of your dental work done ASAP and then cancel the coverage when on COBRA.

Since COBRA is a continuation of employer coverage, my guess is that the same annual max payout would apply, not leaving the OP all that much coverage unless he/she had been nowhere near a dentist all year.

I agree that Option 1 is a no-brainer to turn down. Option 2 might be a good one since they like that dentist and the others in the practice. The OP should check any new coverage carefully; most exclude anything but cleanings the first 6 to 12 months.

In my case, I chose to go without coverage. In the 4.5 years since retirement I haven't had much except a filling or two every year, but I had a root canal in March and now have an appointment with the oral surgeon to get an implant, so this year will be expensive. I still think I was better off not paying premiums.

 

[OldShooter]

I have what is a very tenable solution, though probably not something everyone can use. There is a large university dental school in town and they are enthusiastic about taking patients.

Objections I have had to dentists:
1) Sticker prices are never published.
2) Most dentists are basically commissioned salespeople who really believe in their products, always leaving me wondering whether I actually need what they are pitching.
3) I have no way of determining the quality of the work.

Going to the "U" dental school solves all this plus saves a lot of money. Prices seem to be in the range of 1/4 to 1/3 of retail. Each student is closely supervised by a professor who is consulted to approve a written "treatment plan" and who is then called to inspect each step of the work. The student and the professor have zero financial interest in recommending work, so I trust the recommendations. Finally, the school has all the latest technology available, which small dental offices may not. The only downside is that the appointments take significantly longer due to the constant inspections and quality control.

For those who have this option I'd suggest that they check it out.

 

[bobandsherry]

Look at DentalPlans.com. I was really hesitant initially, but you do save. It's $179/yr for family plan for year, but you can find promo codes to save 15-30%. I just renewed for $144.

A couple of examples....

We pay $49 for our cleaning/exam, and still go to dentist we saw before we got the plan. The dentist would charge $94. Going to dentist every 6 months, with x-rays once a year, we save more than the plan cost us.

I had filling done, paid $94, without the plan the cost would have been $230.

Also had root canal done, saved me over $450 on the procedure.

You can view list of dentists in your area. Most dentists in our area accepted this. Prices vary by dentist as well.


There is no waiting period, sign up today and use tommorow. Also no caps.

 

[GTFan]

Yeah, this site is all about dental discount plans. We use the Aetna one because that's what our dentist's office mgr. recommended for those without insurance and it pays for itself every year.

Otherwise, there is no good dental insurance for our dentist. There is crappy HMO insurance for dentists in places like Aspen Dental that always want to do unnecessary stuff though.

 

[Dtail]

My brother and I have a similar plan to your Option #1 except a little worse. $960 of premiums gets us $2,000 of coverage. This is part of the ACA plan, while very good in Florida for medical, not so much for dental.

 

[bobandsherry]

My brother and I have a similar plan to your Option #1 except a little worse. $960 of premiums gets us $2,000 of coverage. This is part of the ACA plan, while very good in Florida for medical, not so much for dental.

Dental insurance, at least for individual coverage, is not good anywhere. When we were planning our FIRE we talked with our Dentist on what insurance options he would recommend. His recommendation was to not get dental insurance. In his opinion, and in doing this for 30 years, he said the price of insurance plans was not worth it. His reasons, the cost and the limited benefits (capped) they provided.

Just to be sure it's understood, DentalPlans.com is a consolidator of companies that have negotiated discounted rates. My plan through DentalPlans is actually with Cigna, but they offer plans from various other companies including Aetna, Solstice, Alliance and more.

 

[athena53]

Dental insurance, at least for individual coverage, is not good anywhere. When we were planning our FIRE we talked with our Dentist on what insurance options he would recommend. His recommendation was to not get dental insurance. In his opinion, and in doing this for 30 years, he said the price of insurance plans was not worth it. His reasons, the cost and the limited benefits (capped) they provided.

Ours said Delta Dental was OK- DH had that because he liked being insured. I never signed up. And, FWIW, the dentist's office assistant said Coventry was a real pain when they tried to get claims paid. I'm having coffee with a friend tomorrow; her job is processing claims for a dental practice. I'll post if I learn anything else!

 

[bobandsherry]

Ours said Delta Dental was OK- DH had that because he liked being insured. I never signed up. And, FWIW, the dentist's office assistant said Coventry was a real pain when they tried to get claims paid. I'm having coffee with a friend tomorrow; her job is processing claims for a dental practice. I'll post if I learn anything else!

With the DentalPlans plans there is no claim or paperwork. Just discounted price paid for at time of service. Complete list of services and discount prices are available for your dentist is available for download, so no surprises. You can even call their customer service before sign up to check on prices for specific procedure code for your dentist prior to signing up. As i mentioned earlier, I was hesitant to their service but has worked exactly as they describe.

 

[travelover]

With the DentalPlans plans there is no claim or paperwork. Just discounted price paid for at time of service. Complete list of services and discount prices are available for your dentist is available for download, so no surprises. You can even call their customer service before sign up to check on prices for specific procedure code for your dentist prior to signing up. As i mentioned earlier, I was hesitant to their service but has worked exactly as they describe.

This sounds like a good alternative if one has no access to a subsidized dental insurance plan.

 

[Henry Lili]

Dentalplans.com is where I found my plan four or five years ago. Still have it. No problems

 

[Scuba]

Dentalplans.com looks good at first glance. Unfortunately my dentist doesn’t participate and we have had him for a long time and we both like him and his staff. If he retires or if one of us needs major work, we may consider making a change.

 

[Dash man]

We continued with Delta Dental after Cobra ran out. About $74/mo for both of us. We appealed the six month period for reduced coverage since we were with them prior, and they agreed.

 

[bobandsherry]

We continued with Delta Dental after Cobra ran out. About $74/mo for both of us. We appealed the six month period for reduced coverage since we were with them prior, and they agreed.

I dunno, paying $888 (plus any deductible and co-pays) for the year seems high for the level of dentist work we typically need. Are you getting $888 in savings from using insurance? Is there a cap on coverage provided annually? Just seems like a lot compare to our typical dental expenses each year.

 

[bobandsherry]

Dentalplans.com looks good at first glance. Unfortunately my dentist doesn’t participate and we have had him for a long time and we both like him and his staff. If he retires or if one of us needs major work, we may consider making a change.

Yeah, not every dentist in in one of the programs that they carry. But our dentist was in the plan. And as I spot checked for other local dentists (just in case they left and we needed to find another dentist) I found only a couple that weren't. But they make it easy to check before making any decision.

 

[Dash man]

I dunno, paying $888 (plus any deductible and co-pays) for the year seems high for the level of dentist work we typically need. Are you getting $888 in savings from using insurance? Is there a cap on coverage provided annually? Just seems like a lot compare to our typical dental expenses each year.

This year absolutely worth it. Will it be every year? I don’t know, but at least I get negotiated rates and can use the coverage in PA, FL and WA.

 

[Doribe]

I took Cobra for my dental insurance. I paid 18 months worth of premium out of my paycheck. One advantage is the low cost. I think it was about $40/month. Secondly, the premium is pretax, so there is additional savings. Finally, I had family dental for 18 months. I think they would have let me pay monthly, but I would have lost the tax savings.

Since this has completed, I am just on self pay.