Is Dental Care Affordable?
Menasha, WI
 Paying for dental care after hearing how much certain procedures cost sounds unnerving, to say the least. However, without clean, healthy, strong teeth to chew your food and smile in pictures, life starts to lose its luster.
Why is Dental Care So Expensive?
First of all, dental care is performed by quality, highly trained professionals, and it is physically and mentally taxing work. The compensation for the expertise and labor of skilled dentists raises the price of dental care.
Dental care procedures can take long hours to complete with lots of meticulous and precise work. It also requires expensive and often imported materials. Dentists have to pay dental labs and technicians to prepare restorations like dental crowns.
Dental treatments utilize the newest technology available. This technology is usually patented and expensive to buy and use. All these things combined, along with inflation, your location, and how experienced your dentist is, impacts the price of treatment. Using higher quality materials, for longer procedures, by highly skilled dentists will become expensive.
However, dental procedures keep your teeth healthy, maintain your smile, and improve your overall health. In many ways, the prices are justified.
Is Dental Insurance the Only Solution?
Dental insurance does make it easier to pay for dental procedures. However, it does not cover everything. There are procedures that your dental insurance does not cover at all or only covers partially. The cost of dental insurance seems to rise without the benefits or payout from the insurance company increasing.
Over 70 percent of Americans have dental insurance in one way or another. Make a point to learn how much your dental insurance covers and what procedures it doesn't cover at all.
Ultimately, dental insurance does make it easier for one to schedule dental appointments. It is better to have dental insurance than not to have it, despite its limitations. Here are some procedures that become easier to pay for with dental insurance:
What to Do if You Do Not Have Dental Insurance
The price of dental care procedures like dental implants, dental bridges, or dental crowns can seem very high if you do not have dental insurance. However, going to the dentist without dental insurance is a reality for many people who cannot afford dental insurance. Also, since the early 1980s, the coverage for dental insurance has not risen as it has for medical insurance. Dental care prices have skyrocketed in comparison.
Here are some of the things you can do if you have to see the dentist without dental insurance.
Get Preventative Dental Exams
If you regularly get routine cleanings and dental exams, that might equal or be less than the price of paying for monthly dental insurance. Through a preventative dental exam, you can ensure that you don't face issues requiring such expensive treatment. This way, you can avoid large payments at the dentist.
Prioritize and Save
Prevention cannot stop everything; if you have a problem or two that show up during a dental exam, you can prioritize a more significant problem over less significant ones. Once you have prioritized what procedures to get, you can get one the same year and another next year. This way, you can set aside an amount for monthly treatment until you can afford the treatment. Until then, you can follow your dentist's instructions to not aggravate the problem further. This may entail a strict dental regimen or diet.
Credit Card
Let's say you have a serious dental issue that cannot wait any longer and must have it addressed. For example, you are in severe pain because of an impacted wisdom tooth. The solution to the pain is to have it extracted. This is an unavoidable procedure, and you can't wait for it until next year or even a couple of months. What can you do? You can pay for the extraction using a credit card and pay for that in regular installments. That way, you can finish your procedure and pay off your debt immediately. In dire situations, using your own personal credit card to make your own personal payment plan at your own pace is helpful.
Dental Payment Plans
Maybe you cannot use your own credit card at the moment. How else can you pay for dental treatment in an emergency? Ask us at Mid Valley Dental. We may be able to find a solution appropriate to your problem. We may have dental payment plans available or be in contact with third-party creditors. We never want a patient to leave without treatment, so don't be shy and inquire about a dental payment plan.
Preventative Saving
Let's say you haven't experienced any dental issues yet but cannot afford dental insurance. You can save some money every month for any dental issues, like your own personal dental insurance. This can give you the financial cushion necessary the next time you need urgent dental care. If you feel like you cannot save anything, here's a tip. Try saving one dollar every week and adding more each week. For example, you save one dollar the first week, two dollars the second, three dollars the third, and so on. By the end of the year, you'd have over a thousand dollars saved.
If you are worried that dental care might be expensive or don't have dental insurance, don't let that stop you from scheduling a dental exam when you need one. If you are facing issues with your teeth, do not hesitate to call (920) 215-4160 for an appointment at Mid Valley Dental with Michael J. Wockenfus, DDS and Dr. Wockenfus. They are experts who quickly determine the cause of your dental issues and suggest prudent treatment. There are always solutions to make dental care more affordable, so never turn away from necessary treatment and risk losing your teeth. |
