While it may not seem like an earth-shattering improvement, today we took a big step in improving our Customer Service today! Today we installed some new software in our office called "Dentforms;" what this software allows us to do, starting NOW, is to become almost a PAPERLESS dental office. Now, you're probably thinking, "So what does that mean to me," right? Here's what it means: [...]
The Chicago Sun-Times reported today that more Americans are choosing to cut back on visiting the dentist due to the current economic downturn..........with potentially far more expensive consequences than most think. Click HERE to read the full story in the Chicago Sun-Times. We understand the tempation to skip a regular check-up at your dentist's office when times are tough and budgets tight. We also hope you understand that staying on track with regular check-ups could literally save you hundreds or thousands of dollars in dental treatment later. Think about it this way: Skip an appt. now or decide to wait to get the filling done for $1-200........and when the cavity gets much bigger, you might need a build-up filling and crown for $900-1300. Skip getting the build-up filling and crown now for $9-1,300 and you may end up needing a root canal, too, which could add another $800-1100. Wait too long entirely and your tooth may not even be fixable and have to be extracted, and getting teeth replaced can be FAR more expensive than saving them. Just 1 dental implant and crown in Charlotte can cost $3500-5000; what if you need more than 1? Wait too long and multiple teeth that before only needed fillings, now need crowns and root canals? Wait too long and the early-stage gum disease that can be easily controlled now might progress to the point that they can't be saved and you end up in dentures. I know that I'm dramatizing the potential risks a bit here, but the thing is.....those risks are real and happen every day. It makes us really sad when patients put off the inexpensive treatment now and then have to pay a lot more, [...]
Dental Insurance is Changing When looking for a Charlotte dentist, patients often want to get the most from their employer's dental benefits. For ages, most dental insurance plans have included 2 cleanings, 2 exams, and 1 sets of x-rays every year. Of course, this is usually subtracted from your annual maximum, not something separate. However, I have to warn you - this is not always true any longer! With employers looking to cut costs, and insurance companies looking to find ways to keep from paying out as much, in just the last several months, we have run across this situation SEVERAL times, and it's getting more common. So just what is happening with your dental insurance coverage? 1) Just last week, we found 1 insurance company that now only pays 75% of the exam and cleaning, and that's even if you see a dentist who is in-network. It seems crazy, but true. Even if you go to a dentist who is in-network for this plan, they don't cover 100% of the exam and cleaning. Surprisingly, they DO still cover 100% of x-rays, but I expect to see that change soon, too. 2) In the last 3 weeks have found 2 insurance companies that now make you pay your deductible (usually $25-50/year for an individual) on your exam, x-rays, and cleaning! This means that - EVEN IF your plan covers 100% of the cleaning, exam, and x-rays, they still make you pay your deductible on that. This is fairly new; it used to be that deductibles would only apply to things like fillings, crowns, non-surgical gum therapy for gum disease, root canals, etc. Before this, if all you needed was the exams, x-rays, and cleanings every [...]
I can't claim credit for this analogy, but it's a pretty good one, so I thought I'd follow up my last post on dental insurance, what it covers and what it doesn't, with this example of how crazy it can be. Imagine you are the manager of a Target Store. And in that Target, you have 600 items you sell. Everyone who comes into your Target on any given day has a different price they are supposed to pay for these 600 items. For many of these items, neither you nor the customer know the exact price, and the company with whom you have contracted these reduced fees for the customer won't divulge the information, so you have to guess. Not that this isn't already tough enough, but each of these customers has an Uncle who is going to pick up a portion of the elusive price, and it is your job as the manager to know exactly what portion the uncle is paying -- assuming he will not deny it saying that they didn't really need it!! Furthermore, you are supposed to know exactly where that uncle lives, and bill the uncle for the share he is going to pay. On top of this, the customer expects you to get it exactly right, every time, or they get upset. And THAT, folks, is what it's like dealing with dental insurance from the dental office side. ;-)
Dental insurance is an interesting issue today, and it's often a complicated one that confuses many patients. Heck, sometimes it even confuses us! Therefore, I'd like to offer a little clarification on what dental insurance is and isn't, what it covers and what it doesn't cover, when it's worth having and when it's not, and what you can do to make your life and ours a lot easier, smoother, and more trouble-free when it comes to your dental benefits. First and foremost: DENTAL INSURANCE IS NOT LIKE MEDICAL INSURANCE!!!! I really can't stress this enough. With medical insurance, you pay your copay, and your insurance pretty much covers everything after that unless you go out of network or it's something unusual. With dental insurance, you typically only get a certain amount of benefits per year, usually $1,000 - $1500. If you're really lucky and have a great employer, it might be as high as $2,000/year. What does "UCR" mean, and is it really what it says? "UCR" stands for "Usual, Customary, and Reasonable" fees. Here's the problem that most people don't understand......every single insurance company determines what THEY think UCR should be, it varies by the ZIP code of your doctor/dentist, and not only will insurance companies NOT tell us or you what their UCR fees are, but they also don't even reveal how they calculate them. Obviously, this makes it much more difficult for us to accurately estimate what your co-pay will be, and unfortunately, it often means you end up with a remaining bill after insurance pays less than we originally expect. The GOOD NEWS is that we have recently updated our practice management software to the newest version, and it has some [...]
We've actually been a Preferred Provider for Delta Dental Premier for several years now, but we just received confirmation that CIGNA has now processed all the paperwork, and we are officially listed as a Preferred Provider for CIGNA as well. This is great news for the many patients who already receive care with us and who have CIGNA, but for other patients who are seeking a dentist on their list. This will provide some significant savings for anyone whose employer offers them dental insurance through CIGNA. Of course, I don't want to miss this opportunity to plug our affordable Quality Dental Plan, which is a program that we created for our patients with no dental insurance, or who perhaps have dental insurance but it's a HMO or other plan that won't allow them to see us, but they value the service and quality we provide and want to keep us as their dentist. Follow the link to our website for more details, or call and talk with Rosie Bonnett, our Front Desk/Patient Care Coordinator, and she can help you get signed up.
