As open enrollment approaches, you may be looking through your benefits for the coming year and deciding whether dental insurance makes sense for you and your family.
Dental insurance can absolutely be helpful. But one of the biggest misconceptions we see is that dental insurance works the same way medical insurance does; however, most dental plans are better thought of as a benefit or discount toward the cost of your dental care, almost like a coupon, rather than something that is going to cover everything you need.
Understanding that distinction can make it much easier to choose a plan, use your benefits wisely, and make decisions about your oral health without letting insurance dictate your care.
How Does Dental Insurance Actually Work?
Every dental insurance plan is different, but most plans have rules surrounding deductibles, annual maximums, covered services, waiting periods, networks, and the percentage the insurance company will pay toward different types of treatment.
Preventive services, such as routine exams and cleanings, often receive the highest level of coverage. When you need restorative or more extensive dental treatment, your plan may pay only a portion of the cost.
Many plans also have an annual maximum, which is the most the insurance company will pay toward your dental care during a benefit year. Once that maximum has been reached, you are typically responsible for additional treatment costs.
This is why we encourage patients to think of dental insurance as something that can help make dental care more affordable — not necessarily as something that determines which care you should receive.
What Should You Look for During Open Enrollment?
If you’re choosing dental benefits for the upcoming year, don’t look at the monthly premium alone.
Take a closer look at the annual maximum, deductible, preventive coverage, waiting periods, network restrictions, and coverage percentages for common procedures. If you know you may need dental work in the coming year, it can also be helpful to see how your plan handles services such as fillings, crowns, periodontal treatment, or other restorative care.
And remember: the plan with the lowest premium isn’t automatically the plan that will save you the most money.
At Greenlee Dental, we work with many major dental insurance plans, and our insurance specialists can help patients understand their benefits, check eligibility, and estimate what insurance is likely to contribute before treatment begins.
Your Insurance Doesn’t Determine Your Treatment
This is an important one.
Our job is to recommend treatment based on what is best for your oral health, not simply what an insurance company chooses to cover.
There may be times when your dental insurance covers only a percentage of a recommended procedure, limits how frequently a service is covered, or doesn’t provide a benefit for a particular treatment at all. That doesn’t necessarily mean the treatment isn’t necessary or beneficial. It simply means it falls outside the benefits provided by your specific plan.
We want our patients to understand both sides of that equation. We’ll explain the care we’re recommending and why, while also helping you understand your estimated insurance benefits and out-of-pocket costs before moving forward.
What If You Don’t Have Dental Insurance?
Dental insurance isn’t the only way to make routine dental care more affordable.
For patients without dental insurance, Greenlee Dental offers our Greenlee Dental Wellness Program, an in-house membership program designed to provide straightforward, predictable access to preventive care.
For $450 per year, our Standard Wellness Program includes two periodic exams, one limited emergency exam, diagnostic X-rays, two child or adult cleanings, and discounted additional cleanings. Members also receive 10% off Invisalign services and 15% off other services and products.
We also offer Perio and S.R.P. Wellness Programs for patients who require periodontal maintenance or scaling and root planing.
Unlike traditional dental insurance, the Wellness Program doesn’t involve deductibles, waiting periods, or insurance claim denials. It’s simply another option for patients who want to stay consistent with their dental care without purchasing traditional dental insurance.
Insurance or No Insurance, We’re Here to Help
Whether you have great dental benefits, limited coverage, or no dental insurance at all, our goal is the same: to help you understand your options and make informed decisions about your oral health.
If you’re reviewing your dental insurance options during open enrollment, take the time to look beyond the premium and understand what you’re actually getting for your money. And if you decide traditional dental insurance isn’t the right fit, ask us about the Greenlee Dental Wellness Program.
Our team is always happy to help you understand your benefits, anticipated costs, and payment options before beginning treatment.
Looking for a dentist in Oklahoma City or Nichols Hills? Contact Greenlee Dental to schedule an appointment or learn more about our insurance, financing, and in-house Wellness Program options.