Iowa Geek: Gnashing My Teeth

Well, crud. I just got a message from my dentist’s office. It seems it is time for Doug and I to venture down to south-west Iowa and have our teeth checked.

I dread this for a couple of reasons. The first is, of course, that this is the dentist. {{shudder}} Having my teeth cleaned gives me the willies. I cannot for the life of me figure out why anyone would want to poke around people’s mouths for a living. Gack! Can you imagine the horrible dental hygiene dentists and their assistants must see daily? Or the halitosis?

The second reason is the cost. Dental visits aren’t cheap. Which is why we drive an hour and a half south of our home to visit the dentist. He is half the cost of a dentist where we live. Half the cost.

Because Doug is a consultant we pay for our own health coverage. Which is a pretty big chunk of change every month. To add dental coverage on to that, through my health insurance company, makes no sense. It is actually a losing proposition.

Well, it was. Now I’m not so sure. Doug and I have both had all of our wisdom teeth removed. I had braces. I am relatively sure that at least one of our lovely daughters will be requiring some sort of expensive dental work in the future.

As I am sure you know by now, I am a planner. So in my wanderings around the world wide web I did a bit of searching for discount dental plans.

I found this great site that helps you find and compare dental plans in your area and find a dentist who works with your plan.

There is tons of info available- like my big question: What is the difference between a dental plan and dental insurance?

Some of the characteristics of Dental Insurance include:

Limitations,
deductibles and annual maximums
Waiting periods for major dental procedures
Tedious and time-consuming written claims process
Limitations/exclusions
on pre-existing conditions
Certain dental specialties, such as cosmetic
dentistry, are
rarely covered
Consumers pay expensive monthly premiums
for defined coverage
Typically inaccessible to individuals and families
unless provided by their employer
Some of the characteristics of Discount

Dental Plans include:

No annual limits, members enjoy discounts on most
dental services all year long
Most plans activate within 1 - 3 business days
No tiresome paperwork hassles, plan membership card is presented for
discounts on most dental services
No health restrictions
Select plans
include discounts on dental specialties, including cosmetic dentistry and
orthodontics
Consumers pay affordable membership fees for access to a
network of providers offering discounts on most dental procedures
Available
directly to individuals, families, businesses and groups
In short, discount
dental plans are an affordable and easy-to-use alternative to dental insurance,
and offer plan members significant savings on most dental procedures.