Friday, July 17, 2009

Supplemental Dental Insurance -- It's not a mystery

By Matt Smith

Do you think you know anything about Supplemental dental insurance? Don't worry, most people assume that employees are covered for dental care with their medical coverage; however, that is not a fact. Dental insurance at work takes care of preventive care, such as annual cleaning, prophylactics, x-rays. But, if you have major teeth problems, your health coverage or dental insurance does not cover this.

Now, this is where supplemental dental insurance becomes a must have. The costs of dental treatment without insurance can be staggering. The reason why insurance companies choose to make dental coverage minimal is because the assumption is problems with your teeth are preventable with proper dental hygiene and thus expensive coverage is not necessary.

Supplemental dental insurance is the type of insurance that can cover the cost of crowns, bridges, endodontics which is a disease related to the root of the teeth and periodontics, which is a condition wherein your gums are infected.

It is not costly to be covered through an supplemental dental insurance plan. supplemental dental insurance plans are available through most companies and need to be requested. You should not expect the coverage is there. Supplemental dental insurance is usually covered by most companies, and if that is the case, be sure not to take it for granted.

There are national insurance carriers that offer supplemental dental, wherein you get to choose your own dentist. The type of coverage that allows you to choose your dentist is called open panel. The other option is the more common feature in a supplemental dental insurance plan, called closed panel. Here, you are required to choose a dentist from pre-selected list.

"Closed panel" supplemental dental insurance plans have two kinds. The first option within a supplemental dental insurance is called a Preferred Provider Organization (PPO). This option allows you to have lower premiums if the dentist is chosen from a pre-selected list.

Exclusive Provider Organization (EPO) is the second option within a supplemental dental insurance plan that restricts your choice of dentist. Dental problems that are true emergencies are treated by any dentist and often are covered by the supplemental dental insurance coverage.

There a few options to pay for coverage, either percentage of services, or prepaying for the treatment in advance. Another option is to pay for the treatment after the treatment is completed.

Supplemental dental insurance is a great way to prevent unexpected costs to hurt your budget.