How to Choose Cheap Dental Insurance Plan

By Rojer @healthxwellness

Dental Insurance Plan

Good oral health is part of your total health picture. Dental insurance can help you get the dental treatment you need. Dental Insurance is designed to pay the costs associated with dental care. Cheap Dental insurance offers a protection from unexpected dental expenses by paying all or a portion of the bills from dentists, and other providers of dental services.

The increase on life expectancy has also increased the need for dental care in order to keep teeth in good condition. As we get older we may find ourselves in a greater risk to need major dental work even if we take good daily care of our teeth.

This guide will help you to choose the cheap dental insurance that best fits to your needs.

Dental Plans: What’s Included?

Several types of service are included (to varying degrees) in typical dental plans:

Routine and preventive care: These include periodic checkups, cleanings, x-rays and fillings; fluoride and sealant applications to prevent cavities; and certain types of oral surgery, gum care (also called periodontics) and root canals.

Emergency care: This includes cracked or broken tooth repair or extraction and treatment following an accident involving the mouth and teeth.

Complex care: This includes orthodontia, dentures or bridges. Many dental plans cover about half the cost of these types of procedures.

Dental Insurance: What to Look For

Traditional dental insurance

With this type of plan, you’ll have the widest choice of dentists, but you may end up paying more out of pocket. You’ll be responsible for an annual deductible plus co-insurance payments, which are a percentage of the cost of treatment. You may pay a lower rate of coinsurance for preventive treatment than you will for restorative treatment. There’s usually an annual limit on how much the plan will pay for treatment.

Additional Features

Aside from the standard features, look for extras like the ability to track claims online, the ability to fill out forms online, dentist finder features and more. By checking the available features, you can determine which company would be best for you.

Dental preferred provider organization

With a dental PPO, the insurer has a network of dentists who agree to accept a certain discounted fee for each type of service. If you go to a dentist in the network, your co-insurance cost will be less than if you go to an out-of-network dentist. Dental PPOs usually have yearly policy limits and may have deductibles you have to meet as well.

Help and Support

Great customer service and support are important in an online dental insurance agency. Find out what kind of customer service is available with each insurance company you’re considering. Most companies offer at least a telephone number and an email address so that you can contact a customer service representative. Some companies offer the added benefits of an FAQ section or online chat. If there isn’t at least one method of getting in touch with the company, it’s advisable to skip it and search for another company.

Cheap Dental Insurance

Payment

Find out how you’re supposed to pay your premiums with the company you’re considering. Most companies offer either online payment, manual payment or both. If it’s not indicated on their website, you may need to call them in order to determine how you’re going to pay. Many customers feel that online payment is most convenient, while others consider manual payments more advantageous. It’s important to find out which method the company you’re considering prefers.