Accepted Dental Insurance Companies

Most dental plans will cover two cleanings per year (either once every 6 months or anytime twice a year), as long as they are deemed “reasonable and customary.” However, if your visit falls outside of this range, then they may cover only a small percentage of your visit, and you would pay for the balance of the visit.

Dental policies have an annual maximum for dental payments. If you have enough of that maximum left over for the year, then your insurance company will pay. If it doesn’t, then only what is remaining will be paid.

No, we do not currently accept Medicaid insurance.

Traditional medical plans are designed to protect you from large, unexpected health expenses, but dental plans do not work this way. Their main purpose is to serve as a yearly coupon towards specifically-outlined dental care expenses. Once you have exceeded your limits for these expenses, then your coverage ends for that period of time.

• Non-network policy: this allows you to go to the provider of your choice. Your dental plan pays the same amount whether the dentist is in or out of network.
• PPO (Preferred Provider Organization) policy: with this plan, you can go to the dentist of your choice, but you may have to pay some additional out-of-pocket expenses if you decide to go to a dentist outside of your network.
• DMO (Dental Maintenance Organization): this is a company that contracts with specific dentists. In this plan, you are required to visit only that office.

Quick Tip: To find out specifically what kind of policy you have, call the 800 number on your card and ask these questions: Will my dental policy allow me to go to any provider I choose? Is there any kind of penalty for going out of network? If so, how much is that penalty?

Unlike your HSA (Health Savings Account), dental insurance often has a “use it or lose it” policy. This means that if you fail to use your benefit maximum in a year, then that amount doesn’t roll over to the next, or future, years.

If your employer offers dental insurance plans, they tend to be more affordable than individual plans. Employers can help you save money on these plans by navigating the details of the plan, as well as covering the premium costs.

However, if you are willing to do your homework, you may be able to find a good, affordable insurance plan on your own. One thing to keep in mind when looking: at the end of the day, the insurance company is looking to benefit too, so ask specific questions before you decide to commit to a plan.

When you purchase a plan, often it’s not clear how long you would have to wait to receive your benefits. This is another important question to make sure that you ask the dental insurance company. Even if you are continuing to pay your premiums, sometimes you might have to wait anywhere from six months to two years before the dental insurance company pays for treatments.

A good rule of thumb is to take your monthly premiums and multiply them by 12. If this number is more than your expected cost of dental treatments for the year, then you may be paying more for dental insurance than is necessary.

Additionally, if you have healthy teeth and visit the dentist every 6 months for hygiene visits (vs. more extensive treatments), this is another case where you might be paying more than you need to. However, if you know that you may need more extensive treatments, dental insurance could serve as a “health savings plan” to pay for the treatment.