Dental Insurance vs. Dental Discount Plans, Don't Be Confused
If you do a search for "dental insurance" on any major search engine, most of the results you will see will not be for actual dental insurance. Instead, most results will be for "dental discount plans," (commonly referred to as "dental plans" for short).
Don't be confused. Even though people often use the terms interchangeably, dental insurance and dental plans are not the same. There are significant differences. Here is a summary of the major differences.
The #1 attraction of "dental insurance" is that (in most cases) you may use any dentist for covered services. However, dental insurance contains deductibles and waiting periods that severely limit the amount of your potential insurance reimbursement in the first year. You are then responsible for "co-insurance" (a portion of the cost) on "basic" and "major" dental procedures.
Virtually all dental insurance policies contain an annual limit on benefits. In addition, your insurance reimbursement is subject to a "Maximum Allowable Charge" (MAC) for each procedure.
In short, unless you are part of large employer group plan, don't count on "coming out ahead" with dental insurance. The reason is simple economics. No dental insurance company can afford to pay you more in benefits than you pay to the company in premium.
Thus, dental insurance policies contain waiting periods, annual limits, and other restrictions to help ensure that this never happens. After paying all claims, a dental insurance company must plan to have enough premium dollars left to pay salaries, overhead, and expenses, plus some for profit.
Dental discount plans are based on an entirely different business model. Instead of reimbursing dental expenses, dental discount plans use the principle of "collective purchasing power."
Careington Dental Plan is an undisputed industry leader. Using Careington as an example, here's how it works. With over 8 million members nationwide, Careington negotiates with dentists to provide dental services to its plan members at a substantial discount, up to 60% off of regular fees. In return, Careington sends the dental office a steady stream of new patients. It's a win-win for everyone.
The drawback of a dental plan such as Careington is that members must use participating plan dentists for savings. The advantages are that unlike dental insurance, there is no waiting period for service, existing dental conditions are accepted immediately, and there are no annual limits on services or savings. Also, with a dental plan there are no claim form paperwork hassles as there is with dental insurance.
Individuals can join the Careington Dental Plan through the website - DentalPlans.Pro - for only $6.95/month and receive a temporary ID card within minutes via e-mail. New members may use the dental plan the same day they join, making Careington Dental Plan ideal for dental emergencies, or for anyone wishing to save on dental care ASAP.
Compared to traditional dental insurance, Careington dental plans cost far less, no waiting periods are required, there are no annual benefit limits, and best of all, "pre-existing" dental conditions are accepted immediately.Dental Discount Plans
Dental Plans
Dental Discount Plan
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