Every time my dentist office calls to remind me about a teeth cleaning, I'm always surprised that six months has already flown by. It always feels like I was just there. Life moves fast when you run your own business and have a set of mischievous twins at home (plus a one-year-old baby).
When we go to the dentist, it's always a family affair and the twins never fail to give the dental hygienists a run for their money. But how how can I make sure they're not running away with my money too?
This year, instead of signing up for a traditional dental insurance plan, I opted for a dental discount plan I was skeptical, but the results were awesome! Here's how it worked.
Over $370 savings with dental discount plan
This was my first visit with my discount dental card. My wife and I needed cleanings, and exam, and x-rays and the twins needed a cleaning and an exam (thankfully, the baby doesn't have teeth yet).
I knew I'd be paying cash and then applying the discount. But would it really work?
After our visit, the receptionist put together the bill: $730. Yikes. I then handed her the discount card which she ran just like an insurance card. However, instead of sending a bill off to the insurance company and then late to me, a new price came up right away: $374.
Wow! An over 50% savings totaling $374. Here's a break-down of the regular cash price and then my price with the discount card:
But what if I still had my traditional dental insurance? Our previous dental policy (really good through my company) had a $50 copay for cleanings and $25 copay for x-rays. Our bill at the dental office would have been about $250. Cheaper than what I paid, but then you have to factor in the dental insurance policy was costing me $120/mo versus the discount plan which is only $25/mo and includes all of the other benefits of telemedicine, bill negotiation, vision, etc. Since we go to the dentist every six months, my overall savings versus insurance was about $500.
The smarter option
When deciding between dental discount plans and dental insurance for your family, remember that unless you receive dental insurance through your company, it's unlikely you will get more value than what you put into it. If you have to purchase your own dental coverage then the best way to achieve maximum savings and benefits is a discount plan. You pay an annual premium that is much lower than the monthly premiums required by dental insurance and you gain access to a network of dental providers who offer reduced costs. The chart below is a good reminder of how much better of an option dental discount plans are than dental insurance.
