Dental Question

[roguester]

I had a "sky is falling" dental appointment a few years ago. It was a private practice. They also said I needed a deep cleaning, but first a prescription mouthwash. And they took x-rays that were over the top and not covered by my insurance. When the second appointment was close, they called to remind me and told me that the cleaning would cost $150 (I think). I cancelled the appointment, and went elsewhere. I never got a bill for those x-rays.

That's freaking nuts. Xrays and deep cleanings are covered by my insurance. I had an extraction and a couple of root canals but they were definitely necessary.

 

[Huntn]

Thanks all who answered! I have identified another dentist who I believe accepts my insurance, based on a friends recommendation that he has been seeing for years. I will be contacting him today.

I am not a dental professional but based on personal experience, it is usually better to consult with a periodontist for bone loss and gum recession than a dentist.

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ETA: a diagnostic exam and consultation with a periodontist probably will cost less than $700. So you can get both a second opinion on your dentist's diagnoses and receive better advice on bone loss, jaw, and gum issues for less than the deep cleaning charge.

I did not know about periodontist! I will have a discussion about this! Thanks.

 

[Huntn]

That's freaking nuts. Xrays and deep cleanings are covered by my insurance. I had an extraction and a couple of root canals but they were definitely necessary.

As I recall the last dentist who pushed deep cleanings on me, it was mostly covered by insurance, there was a smalll copay or additional charge as I recall. I have since changed dental insurance, so will be looking into this. Codes can be confusing as in there are hundreds or thousands of them, with different varieties.

These deep cleanings included a “laser” treatment to “kill bacteria”. They printed out a page with codes which will be helpful when I talk to my insurance. It was $90 a quadrant, plus other goodies.

I have identified another dentist who I’ll talk to today. I find it suspicious that both times I’ve run into this, deep cleaning hard sell, it was a corporate chain, not a private practise. The first time, both my wife and I felt it was just a ploy to increase their income stream.

 

[roguester]

As I recall the last dentist who pushed deep cleanings on me, it was mostly covered by insurance, there was a smalll copay or additional charge as I recall. I have since changed dental insurance, so will be looking into this. Codes can be confusing as in there are hundreds or thousands of them, with different varieties.

These deep cleanings included a “laser” treatment to “kill bacteria”. They printed out a page with codes which will be helpful when I talk to my insurance. It was $90 a quadrant, plus other goodies.

I have identified another dentist who I’ll talk to today. I find it suspicious that both times I’ve run into this, deep cleaning hard sell, it was a corporate chain, not a private practise. The first time, both my wife and I felt it was just a ploy to increase their income stream.

Yeah the deep cleanings are worth it but they really only get done once in a while. It takes a while since they kinda lift your gums up and clean under all that. There's probably a medical term for it.

 

[Huntn]

Yeah the deep cleanings are worth it but they really only get done once in a while. It takes a while since they kinda lift your gums up and clean under all that. There's probably a medical term for it.

I checked the codes provided by this dentist with my insurance and found this kind of cleaning is only covered by insurance once every 2 years, yet they proposed doing this every 3 months at $700 a pop. No thanks. I have found another dentist to give a try. As suggested in this thread, I’ll ask about a periodontist. I’m also stepping up my water pik sessions to 2 a day instead of one.

 

[roguester]

I checked the codes provided by this dentist with my insurance and found this kind of cleaning is only covered by insurance once every 2 years, yet they proposed doing this every 3 months at $700 a pop. No thanks. I have found another dentist to give a try. As suggested in this thread, I’ll ask about a periodontist. I’m also stepping up my water pik sessions to 2 a day instead of one.

Yeah hell no. It was offered to me by my dentist but not necessary. My dentist did point out some issues with my gums and other things, but deep cleaning was only talked about once.