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One obstacle that often comes up when a patient needs to have dental treatment is that of finances. Although most dentists do try to keep their fees as affordable as possible, sometimes the prices for various procedures are higher than a patient can comfortably cover. If you have an extensive treatment plan, it can be helpful to think about all of your options to pay for each phase as it comes. Here are some options to consider.
Maximize Your Dental Insurance
If you have dental insurance, then you will want to maximize your benefits. This means having two cleanings and checkups done each year (which is what most insurance companies pay for) and having xrays done at regular intervals. Keeping up with your preventative work is a good way to catch problems while they are still small.
Another consideration applies more during the second half of the year for most patients. If you have a large treatment plan but not everything on the list needs to be done immediately, it’s often possible to plan to put some off until the next calendar year. Your dental benefits often reset at that time, and you’ll have a new allotment of funds. Our office can help you determine how much you have for this year’s allotment so you can use up what you can if you have several procedures that need to be done.
Prioritize With Help From Your Dentist
It can be very overwhelming to be handed a lengthy list of procedures and treatments, particularly if you see three or four figures in the cost estimate! If you’re on a budget, don’t be afraid to let your dentist know. He or she can go over the plan and let you know which procedures are more or less urgent than others so you can make educated decisions.
Look Into Dental Health Credit Cards
At InnerBanks, we accept payments from two dental health credit cards. One is CareCredit and the other is the Citi Health Card. These allow you to spread out your healthcare payments over several months or even longer. Sometimes perks like interest-free periods are offered, so be sure to ask. You might be able to use your card at your eye doctor, physician or veterinary offices as well!
Paying for dental care should not be something that stops you from getting necessary work done. Feel free to talk to the dental receptionist about ways that you can spread out your treatment or your payments in order to make it less financially daunting. Try not to put off urgent dental work, however; the longer you wait, the more likely it is that you will develop further problems that may turn out to be expensive to treat.
