Even with insurance it is a good idea to plan ahead for major dental services. Often many dental insurance plan have waiting periods that can effect when you have major dental care covered under the plan. Maximum limitation should also be taken into account so that if you are wanting to stay with in your plans coverages you may want to brake up your dental services to avoid going over your plan maximum limitation.

In addition with many dental insurance company you can get a  free estimate, called a “pre-treatment estimate ” based on your records and your dentist’s proposed treatment plan. Your dental insurance company will review your x-rays, diagnosis and coverage, and send a statement back to you and your dentist detailing what they will pay and what your costs will be. By doing this before services are started it will help you better budget for your dental care cost without any surprises.

Question: I want to stay with our family dentist but his office does not accept anything other then PPO insurance plans.  I am okay with getting a dental PPO plans and have been reviewing the PPO options you provide on this website.  However what I do not like are the waiting periods.  Are waiting periods common in PPO plans? Or is there some way around them.

Answer: Generally PPO plans will have waiting periods common waiting periods are as follows:

* No waiting periods for preventive dental care
* Six months waiting period for Basic dental care needs (such as fillings)
* One year waiting period for Major dental care needs (such as crowns)

However waiting periods will very depending on the plan.  There are some PPO insurance plans that do not have waiting periods. Such as the Madison National with the 1000 maximum limitation. (check to see if that plan is available in your state on our website)  A few dental PPO plans will wave their waiting periods but only if you have a current PPO plan in place for longer then their waiting periods. Though even then there may be some restrictions.

Insurance companies do their best to ensure that their policyholders understand their plans and benefits, but it is up to an individual to make sure that they are making informed choices. The differences in the various plans you can choose from are:

The type of third party funding the plan.
Methods of selecting a dentist.
Compensation of the dentist’s services to you.
The calculations of benefits and payments.

Understanding these differences will enable you to make an informed decision when selecting a dental plan that is best for you or your family. It will also help you understand the insurance companies really do care about your dental health and want you to be informed of your choices.   Keep in mind the dentist is a reflection of the insurance company. They both are here to help you keep that pretty smile healthy.

Question: I have a PPO dental insurance plan that I get though work.  My problem is that the last few times I got hit with what my Insurance Company calls UCR rates.  The insurance company told  me my dentist is above the going rates in my area for his services.   I am  really upset that I keep getting hit with an additional billing that I did not think I was going to have. I did make some phone call to other local dentist that do seem to be less expensive then my last dentist so I am thinking about changing dental office so that I will not have this problem.  How do I go about making sure I do not go over UCR rates?

Answer: You did not state whether or not your dentist was a provider of your PPO plan.  In many cases staying within the plan PPO provider list will help to keep you within the company UCR cost. (Though that is not always a 100% accurate. )    Whether you choice to change your dental office or not does not matter in confirming UCR rates with your dental insurance plan.  Many insurance companies required that you submit a treatment plan before dental services are render so that they can tell you ahead of time what your coverage mount is.  Doing that for all your dental services will avoid you from having any unexpected additional charges. It sounds like to me you have not been doing that. Having your dental work done before confirming your coverages will leave you at risk

Tooth decay occurs when foods containing carbohydrates, such as breads, cereals, milk, soda, fruits, cakes, or candy are left on the teeth. Bacteria that live in the mouth digest these foods, turning them into acids. The bacteria, acid, food debris, and saliva combine to form plaque, which clings to the teeth. The acids in plaque dissolve the enamel surface of the teeth, creating holes in the teeth called cavities, or caries.

Dental decay is a term use for cavities, the decomposition of the tooth structure.  Tooth decay is the process that results in a dental cavity. It occurs when bacteria in your mouth make acids that eat away at your tooth. If not treated, tooth decay can cause pain, infection, and tooth loss.

If you have children that will be going out trick or treating this up coming Halloween, controlling the sweets intake can be hard but do your best.  Too much candy not good for your teeth and over all health.  Have a safe Halloween.

Question: I have not been in to see the dentist for a very long time.  I never had any dental insurance and I work on and off when I can so I do not have a lot of money.  I have been dealing with one of my teeth that hurts on and off.   Only within the last two weeks or so it really hurts more often and I am not sure what to do about it.  I can not afford to see a dentist so how can I make this  pain stop?

Answer: I can understand having very little money so I am not making light of what you stated. However, there are dental insurance plans that are as low a $7.95 a month depending on were you live.  I think it would be worth it to you to at least check them out and into getting one for your dental needs. Having to deal with bad teeth and not go to a dentist is not good for you over all health and well being.

Question: I am in need of dental insurance since I have not been to the dentist for a little over a year now.  I called some local dentist in the phone book and was told not to get a dental HMO plan if I was going to get dental insurance first.    Why do they say that? What is a dental HMO plan and what is so bad about them that three dentist tell me not to get an HMO plan.   The few PPO plans I have seen on line are really pricey.  Are HMO cheaper or more expensive?   I can not go to a dentist without getting some type of plan first.

Answer: I can not speak for the dentist that told you that,  but my best guess would be, because they do not accept dental HMO plans.  HMO dental insurance plans are good low cost dental plans, however they are net work plans only. Which means you have to go to plan dentists.  I would say review the HMO plans that are available to you and then call the dentist in their network to choose a provider that in the plan you may want.

Question: I do not have the money to get my teeth whiten by the dentist so I was thinking of using Crest whiten strips.   I never use whiten strips before so I would like to know, are they hard to use?  Like do the strips stay in place or are you having to mess with them all the time just to whiten your teeth.  Do the strips really work like they show them to?  How long do you use the strip for?

Answer: Crest whitening strips are really easy to use and they do stay in place with out making any type of mess.  They will help to whiten you teeth but not as good as having them whiten by your dentist.  I would suggest that you carefully follow the direction that are provided when using any whitening strips products.

Question: I need to see a Periodontist since it seems I have very bad gums.  I been going to the dentist for my teeth an although I do not have any cavities my gums would hurt.  He  did do a deep cleaning but my gums still bleed and they are still very red.  If I do not have insurance will I need to have a referral to see a Periodontist?  Or can I just go to one on my own.  I have the money I just never bother getting dental insurance because to me dental insurance never insured what I wanted or had really long term waiting period.

Answer: If you do not have insurance you do not need a referral to see a periodontist since you will be paying out of pocket.  However, although dental insurance plan such as PPO would have long waiting periods for periodontal services you may want to look into getting a low cost dental discount plan.  Under a dental discount plan you also do not need to have a referral to see a specialist. Dental discount plans do not have waiting periods and for specialist your normal saving is around 20 percent.  It is a good way to save some money on your dental care need at a very low cost.

Question: I am 70 years of age.  My teeth are all in good shape and I take very good care of them.  So why is it that when I am looking for dental insurance plans many of the ones I have come across are more expensive in their monthly premium for people who are over age 65.  Not only are they more expensive,  but also offer less coverages.  This does not seem fair to me by any means.  Why should I have to pay more and get less.  I know people that are in their thirties that have really bad teeth and need much more dental work done, then I have ever had to have in my 70 years of living.

Answer: I do agree with you,  however there are some dental insurance plans generally PPO’s that do have different rates for member older then 65 and sometime different coverages as well. Much like Medical or Health insurance does.  However not all dental plans do this most of your HMO dental insurance plan are not age rated so you may want to look in that direction when picking a dental insurance plan.

Question: Why do dental insurance plans have waiting periods and dollars max limits?  I am not sure I understand the reasoning behind making me buy a plan but not offering me the coverage I need for a year or sometimes longer.  Then if I do put up with that I get maxed out with a yearly limit amount.  Seems to me only the insurance company benefits from this and not the person buying the plan.  So if any one can explain how buying dental insurance really helps you with your dental costs.

Answer: First it important to note not all dental insurance plans have such limitations.  You may want to look at HMO dental insurance plans. Normally HMO dental insurance plan do not have waiting periods or max limitations.

However to answer your questions it seems as if you are reviewing  dental PPO plans or Indemnity insurance plans.  PPO and Indemnity dental insurance plans will normally have the limitations you spoke about.  They do this in order to pay for higher more costly dental services in the future.  One main benefit of these types of plans is that you are able to stay with or choose your own dentist which is important to many people.

Question: I do not have dental insurance.  I am currently unemployed.   I am in need of having my back tooth fixed since I broke it about a week ago, I am in a lot of pain.  I did call a few dental offices for an idea of cost but since they all state I would need X-rays and  a oral exam before even fixing the tooth the dental cost becomes to high for me.   Where do I find low cost dentist?

Answer: Since you have a current toothache to deal with putting it off even more would not be the best idea. I suggest you look into getting a dental discount plan which will help off set your dental cost and make getting your tooth fixed more affordable.

You can also look to see if there are any dental clinics or school in your area. Dental school and or clinics are normally much cheaper then your regular dentist.  A dental school is a place were students are learning to become a dentist therefore some times there work is free to little cost.  A dental clinic are available to low income families. So cost may very depending on your income.  Either one is at least worth checking into

Question: I need to have four filling and a root canal with a crown.  I do not have insurance right now so I do need to get something in force before going ahead with having any dental work done.   Like most people I do not have a lot of extra money after paying my required bills.   I would like to keep my cost low.  How do I go about not only shopping the dental insurance but the what the dentist cost for services are?

Answer: I suggest that you may want to start with either a dental discount plan or a dental HMO insurance plan. My reasons for that is they both normally offer their plans at a low monthly rate and schedule out the cost for dental services render. That way you can compare cost of the plan and their coverages or discounted saving.

Question: I have been seeing the same dentist for over six years and I really like him.  I do not want to change my dentist since in the past before I found him I had bad experiences with other dentist.   My problem is he said is only a provider of Delta Dental but when I call Delta Dental I am told it is a group plan only.  How do I get insurance that will let me stay with my dentist regardless.

Answer: What you want to look for would be either Dental PPO or dental Indemnity insurance plans. Dental PPOs like your Delta Dental will normally let you go outside their network sometime at a reduce coverage. So make sure you read the terms to confirm what your true coverage is for choosing an outside network dentist.

A dental Indemnity insurance plan does not have any network dentist therefore allowing you to choose your own dentist without changing your coverages.  Something else to keep in mind. Even though you may have called a Delta Dental office that stated that they only do group plans, you still may be able to get a Delta Dental plan.

Not all Delta dental agents sell only group plans. Depending on your state there still may be a Delta dental product sold to individual and their families direct.  At californiadentalinsurance.com do we offer Delta Dental plans to individual and their families. To see if they have Delta dental in your state just enter your zip code for a dental quote.

When you are dealing with a toothache but you do not have any dental insurance to help with the cost of dental care, buying a dental discount plan may be a good option. Dental discount plans are able to provide discounted saving for all your dental needs needs. Saving you money without any long term waiting periods or activation dates to wait for.

Question: I would like to know what are some of the causes for having sensitive teeth?   My teeth are starting to become sensitive.  Mostly when I have hot or cold food. It is really troublesome to me and I would like to know why my teeth are so sensitive.

Answer: One of the reason why you may have sensitive teeth could be that you have receding gum lines that exposes part of your tooth root that is not covered by your tooth enamel.  Or that your tooth enamel is worn down  The tooth root or the tooth which is exposed do to lack of enamel has tiny tubules leading to the tooth’s nerve center.

So when you have hot or cold items it reaches the nerve in your tooth, which can then results in the pain you may feel.  Also tooth decay or cavities that are just starting may not hurt you every day but by having hot or cold items may hurt because it is reaching your tooth nerve.

I suggest seeing a dentist so that he or she can determine what is causing your teeth sensitively and provide treatment.

Question: A close friend of mine really needs dental health care.  She does not have dental insurance and only works about 20 hours work weeks.  She said she has tried getting payment plans from different dental offices, for dental services she will need but was turned down each time for poor credit.

Answer: I would suggest she review either our dental HMO insurance plans though California dental or PrimeCare or our dental discount plans though Careington and Aetna. Both of these plan type are low in cost and will help to make her dental care more affordable.  However depending on how much dental care services she needs, she made still have to budget in her dental care and do a little at a time as she can afford it.

Oral cancer is a disease in which malignant (cancer) cells form in the lips, mouth, or throat. Oral cancer may form in any of three main areas: Lips. Oral cavity, which includes:The front two thirds of the tongue.

Your dentist will normally check for signs of oral cancer at your twice a year check ups.  So make sure to maintain your dental health and see your dentist regularly

Question: I am in very bad shape and need major gum grafting care.   I am low income but I do have dental insurance for basic dental care.  So my current dental insurance will not cover the gum surgery I need. Are there any teaching hospitals for dental care I can go that will provide the services for free?

Answer: Dental school will normally still charge for their services provided. However at a much lower cost.  They also sometimes base their cost on what you can afford to pay.  You will need to call the local school that are near you to find out what their cost factors would be.