High dental bills? I sympathize!

[Sunset]

I was just told that I need a crown (I have decay under the filling) plus some other cavities, abnormal amount for me.
Did any of you get a second opinion? I don’t have any symptoms and dentist wants to do this right away, so I’m not comfortable with diagnosis. Just wondering those who have needed expensive dental work knew they needed it.

The cavity should show in an xray , it should be pretty obvious.

What reasoning did they give that they couldn't drill out the old filling and refill it ?

 

[Walt34]

The cavity should show in an xray , it should be pretty obvious.

What reasoning did they give that they couldn't drill out the old filling and refill it ?

The reason I was given that after there is more filling than tooth left then they have to use a crown. Otherwise the filling will fall apart in a short time and then they'll have to put on crown anyway.

 

[aja8888]

I just paid $900 for an implant. I expect the abutment will be $150-200. Our local dentists charge $850 for crowns each.

I found a dentist doing crowns in one sitting. They take a scan of surrounding teeth and fed it into a laptop. Then a tabletop CNC machine carves the tooth in porcelain in 6 minutes. With 1 minute making an adjustment, it is glued in place. Total time in the office 1 hour and $750 in cost. The dentist doesn't have to spend so much time as doing crowns the old way.

For simple single implants, many dentists and oral surgeons are taking advantage of patients' pocketbooks. Liked I said earlier, it only took maybe 7 minutes to install my implant. I can see where 4 implants and plates is much more technical and time consuming. But not $20k time consuming.

I guess you found a better deal than the rest of us. I hope the implants hold up. I understand in Mexico you can get them done pretty inexpensively also. I have also heard that you get what you pay for. Around here, the going price is what we all pay.

 

[Marita40]

I'm still working, but on a good trajectory with an end date on the horizon. In preparation, I've started to do some of the things I've been putting off (like make a will). Beginning in 2018 the plan is to also start dental work. I know I need several crowns (teeth that the dentist keeps on his "watch" list). In addition, I've had one tooth that, over 20 years, has had 2 root canals, two apioectomies, and some other surgery whose name I forget to open the gum up for easy cleaning. The next step (the final step) is to yank it and get an implant. I just hate to do this before it absolutely needs it, but probably should as my workplace dental insurance covers some percentage of implants. Ugh.
The good news is that I have been funding my HSA for some years. It is now a tidy amount that most likely will be used for dental work down the road.

 

[MRG]

The reason I was given that after there is more filling than tooth left then they have to use a crown. Otherwise the filling will fall apart in a short time and then they'll have to put on crown anyway.

Many of my crowns were done for the same reason. Actually back when we were struggling a dentist tried to avoid crowning a tooth. Six months later I was figuring out how to pay for the crown.

My problem was lack of fluoride and a childhood dentist who wasn't qualified to work on my dog. He didn't use any novocaine, just stopped drilling if it was uncomfortable. Filled it up with amalgam over top the remaining decay.

Other dentist's have told me that's a valid treatment for deciduous teeth. This idiot did it to my adult teeth.

 

[athena53]

I just hate to do this before it absolutely needs it, but probably should as my workplace dental insurance covers some percentage of implants. Ugh.

Definitely keep an eye on the max your employer plan will pay in a year. I was thrilled to find out the first time I got a couple of implants that my employer dental plan covered either 60% or 40%. Then I found out the max the policy would pay for everything in a given year was $2,000-generous, but didn't go far towards $10K worth of work, especially after subtracting what the coverage had paid for other work during the year. If you'll be working into 2019 you may be able to stage the implants so some of the work is done in 2018 (the placing of the titanium plate in the jawbone) and some in 2019 (after a few months of healing, the prosthetic tooth is screwed down into the titanium plate).

 

[Amethyst]

I am not feeling competitive, but Mr. A. and I can beat everyone on this list except possibly Danmar, and his $$ are Canadian...And we have Federal dental insurance. Dental work is just very costly here.

Also the insurance does not cover many items our dentists consider essential (all zirconium porcelain crowns instead of part metal, cadaver bone for building up jawbone for implants, nitrous oxide etc.) With insurance, my latest crown was $1500.

Like some others, I grew up on well water (no fluoride) and my parents didn't think dental checkups were necessary. As soon as I was out on my own earning a little money, I started getting my teeth fixed. When I was in my 20's, I worked overtime to pay for fillings and inlays. As we all know, teeth do not improve with age...

 

[teejayevans]

The cavity should show in an xray , it should be pretty obvious.

What reasoning did they give that they couldn't drill out the old filling and refill it ?

It was a darker grey color, he said he would have remove too much and the tooth could break. It covers about hakf of the tooth. He also said I have 3 other cavities, I usually go with any, and my teeth feel fine.

It’s like if you went to your doctor for the yearly checkup and he tells you have a major disease.... I was like what!?! I check the internet and some of the images are obvious and some aren’t.

 

[gerntz]

Found out today my implant with abutment & crown will be $4200 total pre-insurance. Had molar pulled in Dec. & he packed in bone growth enabler too.

He has this rotating 3D mouth scanner & a hand held device he maneuvers inside the mouth around the implant area. Created a 3D image from the two systems of where the implant will go. I have plenty of bone & distance too nerves.

Implant next month, three months healing, then abutment & fake tooth crown.

 

[aja8888]

Found out today my implant with abutment & crown will be $4200 total pre-insurance. Had molar pulled in Dec. & he packed in bone growth enabler too.

He has this rotating 3D mouth scanner & a hand held device he maneuvers inside the mouth around the implant area. Created a 3D image from the two systems of where the implant will go. I have plenty of bone & distance too nerves.

Implant next month, three months healing, then abutment & fake tooth crown.

I'm just finishing up two implants/crowns and the cost is about $4500 each, with Medicare paying nothing and me getting a 10% senior discount. Ain't life peachy!

 

[athena53]

I'm just finishing up two implants/crowns and the cost is about $4500 each, with Medicare paying nothing and me getting a 10% senior discount. Ain't life peachy!

I'm really hoping I don't need any more implants for awhile; I've had 4 over the years.

Just before I left for India and Nepal last month I started having suspicious pains in one tooth; dentist didn't really see much going on till he took a third X-ray from another angle and then was concerned enough to refer me to the endodontist, who gave me a 7 AM appointment on an emergency basis less than a week before my departure. Endodontist decided to go ahead with a root canal and found a real mess once he got in. He said I definitely would have had to find a dentist in India if it hadn't been treated! I left $1,150 poorer but was immensely grateful- even though I bet I could have gotten a better price in Delhi or Jaipur!

 

[kimcdougc]

Was there a waiting period before major work was covered?

I have Delta Dental through ACA and no there is no waiting period before major work is covered. At least not in Washington State.

 

[bobandsherry]

Those who are facing a large dental expense, look at Dental plans.com. Saved me about $700 with cost of crown and root canal. I had same dentist, just with negotiated rates. Not all dentists in the plan but seems like more than adequate selection. You can see if your dentist is in the plan (mine was Cigna) as well as charges for procedures (and other dentists as well) before you sign up. Nothing but a little of your time lost by looking.

There is no waiting period.

 

[athena53]

I have Delta Dental through ACA and no there is no waiting period before major work is covered. At least not in Washington State.

Interesting- all the private dental plans I've seen in KS and MO (including Delta Dental) don't cover anything but cleanings for the first 6 months to one year. That's why I never signed up; when I retired I'd been continuously covered by dental insurance for the past 20 years or so. I can understand that type of exclusion for someone just getting coverage; it keeps people from trying to game the system buy going without coverage till they suddenly needed major work. In my case, I decided it wasn't worth it.

 

[sirsavesalot]

Your best bet is to kill the bugs causing all your mouth problems: