Dental Insurance Information
Dental insurance can be extremely complicated, but for patients of Michel Dental, the good news is you’ll never need to worry about it. Our caring, knowledgeable dentistry staff will happily answer your questions, walk you through your coverage during treatment planning, and process and file dental insurance claims to ensure you receive your maximum benefits. If you want to know more about dental insurance coverage or schedule an appointment with our team, give us a call today. We’ll be happy to answer your questions and help anyway we can.
How Does Dental Insurance Work?
Dental insurance is notoriously complicated, so if you cringe just thinking about it, let the Michel Dental team help. We will be happy to review your individual policy and help you fully understand your coverage parameters. Some of the basics of dental insurance everyone should know include:
- Dental insurance plans provide coverage for a percentage of their pre-set fair treatment prices, and you will need to cover the remaining percentage out of pocket
- Out of network dentists do not have to charge fees in line with the insurers pricing, so patients need to cover both their percentage and the difference between the plan and practice pricing out of pocket
- Most dental benefit plans have a yearly maximum coverage that on average ranges from $500 to $2000, and any treatments beyond that range will not be covered
- Most insurers offer nearly complete coverage for preventive maintenance appointments, so keeping up with your twice a year visits is the best way to maximize insurance coverage and avoid the need for advanced treatments not covered fully by insurance
How Do I Maximize my Dental Insurance Coverage?
The best way to make the most of your annual dental insurance is to visit Dr. Michael Michel and his Topeka dental team twice a year. The majority of benefit plans cover nearly all of these biannual dental checkups, and regular preventive care is the best way to ensure you avoid advanced treatments that are covered at the lowest percentage by your insurance plan. Another great way to maximize your coverage is to understand how maximums work. We can often plan for advanced treatments that will exceed your maximum plan benefits to be split between two plan years. For instance, if you need to a partial or full denture, we can complete the tooth extractions and denture design during one plan year, and finish the creation and fitting of the denture in the next plan year.
What is the Difference Between In-Network & Out of Network Providers?
In-Network providers have agreed to the pricing, materials, and treatment options as outlined by a specific insurer. This means patients are guaranteed to only owe their out of pocket percentage of treatment. Michel Dental is an in-network provider for Blue Cross Blue Shield, Delta Dental, United Concordia, Cigna, and Guardian DentalGuard Network. Out of network providers do not necessarily agree to your insurance plan’s pricing, so you may need to pay an additional fee to cover the difference between the plan approved cost of treatment and what the dentist charges. At Michel Dental, we happily process and file out of network insurance claims. Our prices are reasonable and competitive with other dental practices, so you will likely need to pay little to no additional out of pocket cost.