Today we hear about the health care crisis in this country on almost a daily basis, what we don't hear is how there are far more people without dental coverage than health insurance. Politicians and companies are in a constant struggle to make health care more affordable but who is talking about how to find dental discounts. Now it's true that a dental emergency wont send you bankrupt, but it can easily run several thousand dollars and put a financial strain on a family.
Why do so many people go without dental insurance? I have found there are several answers to that question.
1. Insurance is expensive: Dental insurance for a family or even an individual can run a pretty chunk of change and there have been no real discount dental plans. For those of us who have a limited income we left choosing between rent & food of insurance.
2. Dental insurance has limits on the benefit: Almost all dental plans have a limit on the annual benefit, usually around $1,000 - $1,200 a year. After you go past the limit you are on your own and have to pay 100% out of your own pocket. If you have ever had much more than a simple exam and cleaning done you know that the bill can go past $1,200 real fast. I remember when I got my first job with a dental plan. I had to go in and get some work done and I felt pretty good. I had insurance! After the doctor looked at me the nurse came in and explained that I was going to use up my entire benefit and still would need to pay over $200. Afterward I told friends about my experience and found out that is just the way dental insurance is.
3. Dental insurance doesn't cover anything "Cosmetic": To most people one of the most important parts of dental care is keeping a nice smile. Insurance wont touch anything they can consider "cosmetic." When I was young my sister had to have two teeth pulled. The dentist said that if they were left she would develop gum problems Still the insurance called it cosmetic and my parents got to pay 100%.
4. People don't feel the immediate need: People, especially young people often don't feel the immediate need to get dental insurance. They figure that they have good teeth and wont have a big need very soon so it would be cheaper to pay for that one visit in several years than pay the monthly premiums every month. The sad thing is with what we covered in the previous points this may be true.
Whatever the reason is that keeps people from buying dental insurance the result is the same. There is a large percentage of Americans that don't get regular check ups and cleanings. These people don't have the money and can't find dental discounts so they wait until they are in pain before going into the dentist. By this time the treatment needed is much bigger and much more expensive.
Pain, more treatment and higher cost are the short-term downsides to putting of dentist visit, but the biggest down side is the long-term effect. By the time we are in our 40's and 50's the years of neglect lead to much bigger problems. Our teeth start to crumble and all we can do is get dentures, implants or caps put on. Now we are into really big money.
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