Do You Pay Through the Nose for Your Teeth?

A couple of days before Christmas I (literally) paid a visit to the dentist for two fillings that were long overdue. Long overdue because I had to cancel no fewer than three appointments in a row this Fall because one kid or another (or me) got sick, bam-bam-bam. Until I gave up for awhile and stopped trying to reschedule altogether.

Have you ever had fillings in molars on opposite sides of the mouth put in at the same time? I don’t recommend it.

One filling was actually a do-over: the old one had chipped. That one was a mother, too — I’m still sore.

Because I opted for composite fillings as opposed to silver, I figured my portion of the bill would amount to somewhere over $100. (Composite fillings each cost $40 more than silver. Our insurance pays %80 regardless.) So imagine my surprise when she quoted me the amount due as $26.80.

“Um,” I said, as clearly as I could, trying to enunciate each word slowly and with as much control over my numb tongue as I could muster so’s to prevent any errant drool from dribbling down my numb chin.  “Not that I’m complaining? But that doesn’t sound right.”

She did some looking and, lo and behold and to my lucky surprise, there was a credit on our account!

Our 14yo had braces put on last Spring. We were able to pay cash for them (thank-you, tax return) to the tune of some $4000. Our insurance pays up to $1500 for dependents for orthodontic care. We used about half of that for Conner several years ago for his palate expander, and the remainder that wasn’t paid up front last Spring trickled in over the next six months. To be honest, I thought we had already received all we were due, but apparently a check for $99.40 was sitting in our account waiting to be mailed to us!

(Since October…? I decided not to press the issue and just be glad I didn’t have to fork over so much for my bill.) (Plus, my mouth was numb.)

Hence, I gladly wrote a check for $26.80 rather than $126.20. If we didn’t have insurance? The bill would have totaled a whopping $357.00. That really would have made my mouth hurt.

Do you have dental insurance? Does it cover any orthodontic care? Do you visit the dentist regularly? Do you owe any dental bills either because you don’t have insurance or because your mouth is so messed up you still couldn’t pay cash for the percentage of the treatment you had to cover after insurance?

I could definitely take better care of my teeth — I think most of us could. I have my own reason for preferring composite fillings over silver, even though they don’t hold up over time as well as silver do, meaning I may need a re-do on these fillings sooner rather than later.

Then again, the filling that chipped was silver. Note to self: Stop crunching ice. Next time I probably won’t be so lucky with a surprise credit on my account.

Related posts:

1. I Am So Thankful That Therapy For Our Child with Special Needs Did Not Break the Bank.
2. A Trip to the ER and a Stay at the Hospital

Tagged as: Healthcare