Survey Results Published on Why People Delay Dental Care
During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, many dental offices across the country were closed. Even after they reopened, there were many Americans who delayed dental care. Regardless of the reason, putting off needed dental care carries the risk of worsening oral health, as conditions may worsen or contribute to additional problems with the teeth or gums. To further explore the issue, DentalInsurance.com commissioned a nationwide study to investigate the many factors that may be behind delayed dental care.
Why Do You Need Dental Insurance?
Dental insurance is more than just a beautiful smile, although that is certainly important. Quality dental coverage encourages you to visit your dentist regularly for routine care and an assessment of your oral health. Poor oral health can negatively affect your overall physical health. For example, periodontitis, more commonly known as gum disease, is linked as a risk factor for several other health problems, including diabetes, heart disease, and lung disease.
Good oral health, in turn, can help reduce the risk of future dental problems that can be painful and expensive to treat. Given the number of affordable dental plans available across the country, getting coverage makes sense from the perspective of your finances as well as your health and well-being.
How Do Dental Plans Work?
Dental plans have many similarities to traditional health insurance, but also some important differences. Like medical insurance, dental insurance charges a monthly premium for plan benefits. These benefits often come with a lower deductible that must be paid out of pocket before the plan begins to share the costs of covered dental procedures. However, some plans have waiting periods that delay coverage of certain services for a period of time after you enroll and your plan becomes active. Often dental services that have waiting periods are for more expensive procedures, such as crowns or root canals. If you have any dental care you need in the near future and are looking for a dental plan, be sure to review the Summary of Benefits to make sure the care you need is eligible for coverage right away.
Like most health insurance plans, many dental plans have networks of providers from which a member can choose to receive care. In HMO dental insurance, dental care received from an out-of-network dentist is generally not covered. PPO dental plans cover out-of-network care, but your out-of-pocket costs are higher than in-network dentists. For a more detailed discussion of the trade-offs between these two types of coverage, see our Dental PPO vs. Dental HMO article.
Discount dental plans, which are not insurance but offer reduced rates for dental services, work only through in-network dentists. Dental indemnity plans are not limited to one network. You can see any dentist you want and get reimbursed at a flat rate for money spent on covered dental services.
Best Practices When Shopping for Dental Insurance
You care about your teeth, so you should be concerned about how you buy dental coverage. Don't just look at the monthly premium. Instead, you should browse the available plans in your area to see:
- What dental services are covered by the plan
- If your dentist accepts coverage
- What is the limit on the plan's payments for your annual dental costs?
- How much you pay out of pocket for dental services you expect to use (as well as services you may need unexpectedly)
- How does the plan handle situations when you want to get care from an out-of-network dentist?
For a more comprehensive discussion of dental plan options and considerations, read our Dental Insurance 101 article. It covers all major plan types, dentist networks, premiums, and out-of-pocket costs.
Individual Dental Insurance
Insurance for individuals is sometimes called private dental insurance because it is purchased privately by the consumer. In contrast, group dental insurance is purchased by a company and offered to the company's employees, often with a subsidy from the employer.
The biggest advantage of individual dental insurance is the variety of plans and the ability to find the right mix of benefits, dental coverage, out-of-pocket costs and premiums. Employer-based dental coverage is often limited to a few plans, while the private market may have several dozen options available in your area.
The four main divisions among individual dental coverage are PPO dental plans, HMO dental plans, indemnity dental plans, and dental discount programs. To see which DentalInsurance.com plans are the best sellers in your area, go to our Dental Plans by State page and click on the state where you live.
Family Dental Insurance
Family dental insurance is a dental policy that covers many people. Eligible family relationships include spouse and children (or other legal dependents). In some cases, not everyone covered by a family plan may live in the same household. For example, a child may live long into college but still be covered by his parents' dental plan. Although you are not legally required to do so, many dental plans allow children to remain on their parents' dental policy until age 26, although some policies may exclude married children.
Family dental insurance premiums usually increase based on the number of people covered by the policy. A single person may have a dental premium of $26.83 on a separate dental plan, but that premium can increase to $53.65 if a tip is added. An additional child can increase the price to $85.84. While these premiums are hypothetical, they help illustrate the reality of premiums increasing with the number of enrollees in a family plan. Since plans charge different rates, you should get a personal dental insurance quote that reflects your family situation.
Discounts can be assigned to each member (for example, $50 per year per member). Some dental plans limit the amount a family must pay in deductibles per year. For example, a plan that charges a $50 deductible per family member may limit the family to a maximum of four annual deductibles ($200).
