Dental Plan Blog

For savings on orthodontia, discount dental plans come out ahead

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Braces are a huge investment and can help you achieve lifetime of healthy, beautiful smiles. So, it certainly makes sense that you find a trusted and experienced orthodontist for your child’s (or even your) orthodontic treatment. It’s also vital to have a dental plan that makes treatment more affordable every step of the way. After reviewing several traditional dental insurance plans with orthodontia riders, it’s plain to see that you pay far more than what you get. That is, if you’re the one paying the premiums. 

If you work for a company that pays 100% of your family dental plan premiums with an orthodontia rider, by all means stick with your current plan. After all, depending on your annual lifetime maximum you’re getting $1,000-$1,500 of your child’s braces on the insurance company’s dime. That’s a pretty sweet deal if you ask me, but unfortunately most people aren’t in this boat.

Perhaps your company’s dental insurance plan doesn’t cover orthodontia and you’re left paying for braces out-of-pocket. Or maybe your employer doesn’t offer dental and you need to by a dental plan on your own to cover your child’s upcoming orthodontic treatment (or yours). If either of these sounds like you then read on. 

Orthodontia coverage on traditional dental insurance plans:

As many of us know, dental insurance plans require subscribers to pay monthly premiums (roughly $50-60 for individuals and $100+ for families) and receive benefits based on the concept of cost-sharing. With cost-sharing, the insurance company will pay a certain percent the cost of each covered procedure based on a usual and customary rate (subscriber pays the rest).

The percentage paid depends on the category of procedure; preventative, basic restorative (i.e. filling a cavity) and major restorative (i.e. bridges, crowns, full or partial dentures, etc.). Our 7 step guide to buying a dental plan tells you much more about insurance cost-sharing.

Orthodontia falls under a 4^th procedural category, corrective work. For the added cost of $6-7 per-month in premium, insurance companies will pay 50% the cost of corrective procedures up to a set dollar amount called the lifetime max ($1,500 is not an uncommon value for this). Typical insurance plan waiting periods for corrective services are 1-2 years.

Below is what a typical family dental insurance plan subscriber would pay over the course of an orthodontic treatment (and what they’d get in benefits).

*Based on typical monthly premium for family plan with orthodontia rider and average procedural costs for 2009 in Massachusetts

Add in the $1,800 in premium the subscriber paid while fulfilling the waiting period and they’re paying a total of $9,125 for just $1,500 in benefit.

Orthodontia with a discount dental plan:

When dental insurance doesn’t make sense for orthodontia coverage, discount dental plans could provide considerable savings without all the limits, waiting periods and high monthly premiums.

Here’s what a Massachusetts family would pay on Universal Dental Plan (a discount dental savings program) during the course of an orthodontic treatment.

*Based on average procedural costs for 2009 in Massachusetts

Discount dental plan members have no waiting periods to fulfill which means access to all discounts begins the day they enroll. So, if you live in Massachusetts, you’re looking to save money braces, you don’t have dental insurance coverage for orthodontia and you’d much rather pay $4,700 than $9,000+ (and I’m sure that’s just about everyone), visit our website and enroll today.

4 Biggest Mistakes People Make When Choosing an Orthodontist

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Mistake #1: Not asking the right questions:

Many people go into their initial consultation with an orthodontist and let them do all the work. After all, orthodontists go through extremely rigid training (4 years of dental school plus at least 2 years of full-time study in an ADA accredited orthodontic residency program) and only 6 percent of dentists are trained as orthodontists.

However, creating a properly aligned and well-functioning smile is a huge task, one that should definitely be performed by an experienced and trusted orthodontist. Your consultation is a vital time for building that trust and the best way to do this is to ask the right questions.

Here are a few good ones to start you off:

1. How long have you been a practicing Orthodontist?
2. Are you a member of the American Academy of Orthodontics?
3. Can you give me a rough idea of how many patients you've treated?
4. How do you handle orthodontic emergencies that occur outside of business hours?
5. What types of financing are available? Do you have a payment plan option available?
6. Do you offer a variety of braces? If so, which ones?

 Mistake #2 Not doing any research on braces beforehand:

Braces are a huge commitment, which is why you need to know what to expect before you move forward with orthodontic treatment. Specifically,  you should know what exactly will go in your mouth and what choices you have for braces today.

Braces traditionally have three main components:

1. Brackets that are attached to each tooth
2. Bonding material that holds each bracket to each tooth
3. Arch wire (a thin wire running from bracket to bracket that holds the entire system together)

Also, there are generally 3 types of braces available today: metal, ceramic and invisible braces. Metal braces are the most common ones. They're made of stainless steel which is very sturdy, excellent for straightening teeth and realigning your bite. Ceramic braces are almost transparent in color so they're much less obvious looking than metal ones. However, the most discreet looking form of braces are the invisible ones, the clear plastic removable slides that are very popular with celebrities.  

 Mistake # 3 Not having your teeth cleaned beforehand:

Orthodontic patients should get a professional dental cleaning from several weeks before they have their braces applied. Also, they should brush and floss thoroughly on the day of the procedure before they get the work done.

Mistake #4 Thinking their lives will change the moment they get braces:

People often think they'll experience some major changes when they get braces. For instance, they'll worry about being in pain all the time and not being able to eat any of their favorite foods.

Here's the truth of the matter:

• Orthodontic patients will experience sore teeth for several days after braces are applied. They also might experience an unusual sensation of constant pressure on the teeth, but that'll only last a few weeks. After roughly 2-3 weeks, they'll hardly even notice they're wearing braces at all.
• People with braces do need to modify their food choices, but only slightly. They should avoid sticky and chewy foods which can clog the wires in your braces, potentially pulling the brackets out of place.

Mistake #5 Not taking action when they find a good doctor

Your teeth are something you live with day and day out so it goes without saying that you'll do your homework and shop around. After all, why trust your smile with anything but the best.

Shopping around is great, in fact it's a must, but you shouldn't lose sight of what you're shopping for: a great orthodontist. So, once you've done your research, had your one-on-one consultation, and after all is said and done, you feel very comfortable with the doctor, why wait to get the process started?

Need to find an orthodontist but not sure where to start? Ask several friends who you know have had braces (or whose children have had braces) what orthodontist they worked with and whether or not they'd recommend him or her. Or, if you're in Massachusetts (and you're also looking for a discount dental plan that makes orthodontia affordable), sign up for Universal Dental Plan, save 20-50% on your braces immediately with our deep dental discounts and browse our network of Massachusetts dentists and specialists to find the best orthodontist for you.

What an irregular bite means for your dental and bodily health

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Have you ever really thought about the impact the alignment of your teeth could have on your overall health?

Probably not, but many studies have shown that the way your teeth are aligned when you bite, and early habits such as thumb-sucking can take a pretty major toll on your long-term dental (and systemic) well being.

Prognathism is the official term for irregularities and/or misalignment in the jaw. There are two distinct types of prognathism, maxillary prognathism (overbite) and progenism (underbite) and both can cause quite a few oral health complications.

Overbite complications:

• An overbite can permanently change the interior and exterior appearance of the mouth (misalignment of teeth alters facial shape)
• Protrusion of teeth with an overbite puts excess pressure on the gums and weakens them, making it harder to bite and chew certain foods.
• Individuals with an overbite have a heightened risk for oral injury.

Underbite complications:

• As is the case with an overbite, the protrusion of the jaw with an underbite causes individuals' face shapes to dramatically change.
• Underbites place pressure on the lower teeth heightening their sensitive in terms of biting and chewing.
• One of the most serious consequences of an underbite is speech problems such as a lisp resulting from jaw misalignment.

Consider the effects your bite may have on both your dental and systemic health and that of your family members and start brainstorming a few steps towards a solution.

Here are a few tips to get you started.

• If you have a child forming early thumb-sucking habits, do your best to wean them off of it.
• If you currently have an overbite or underbite yourself, consider routine orthodontic treatments (Universal Dental Plan offers deep discounts on all orthodontic procedures from our network doctors all throughout Masssachusetts).