Good oral health is important – not only to your teeth but to your overall health as well. But most health insurance plans do not include dental insurance, making dental insurance one of the most common types of private health insurance purchased by individuals. Dental insurance can help prevent small dental problems from developing into large ones by helping to pay for routine exams and checkups. And of course dental insurance can help defray the cost of highly expensive cosmetic and restorative dental procedures, should they be necessary.
The good news is dental insurance is more affordable today than you might think.
Most quality dental insurance plans will offer coverage for Cleanings, Crowns, Oral surgery, Orthodontia, X-rays, and more.
Dental health insurance options
Dental health insurance is available for individuals, small businesses, and families. There are two main types of dental health insurance: indemnity plans and managed care plans.
An Indemnity plans is a traditional “fee for service” health plan. It will be a bit more costly than a managed care plan, but it has far fewer limitations, and you may choose any dentist.
Managed care plans in dentistry function just as they do with medical insurance where a group of dentists operate as a PPO or DHMO. Just as a typical PPO or HMO, you will have to choose your dentist from a list of participating providers. While they offer less flexibility in terms of seeing dentists in or out of “the network”, managed care dental plans are usually less costly than indemnity plans.
Guidelines to shop for a dental health insurance quote
The key to finding affordable dental coverage that is right for you and your family is to make sure you understand your needs and financial concerns. Before looking for dental health insurance, now is a good time to evaluate your annual dental bills. How much do you and your family spend on dental care per year? Do you think your children will require orthodontic care, has anyone in the family been diagnosed with gum disease, or requires extensive dental restorations for missing or broken teeth?
Other factors to consider before purchasing dental health insurance:
Monthlypremiums vary from state to state and levels of coverage.
If you are considering a managed care plan, you might want to make sure your current dentist or dental care specialist is in the network. If not, and staying with them is important to you, you may want to consider an indemnity plan. Most managed care plans will not cover any work done by a provider outside of the network, except in the case of certain emergencies.
Be sure you understand what treatments are covered and which are not under any dental health insurance plan you look at. Routine dental visits, x-rays, and cleanings are almost always covered. Very few dental health insurance plans offer full coverage for cosmetic dentistry, root canals, crowns, and braces, although most plans do offer partial coverage. Remember the more costly the monthly premiums the more services that will be covered.
Getting a dental health insurance quote
As always, the best way to compare dental insurance companies is online. The only questions usually asked is the state you live in or your zip code. Then you will be provided with quotes from various dental insurance companies. You will be able to compare rates and services, and find out much more valuable information, that will allow you to make an informed dental insurance purchase.