Affordable Dental Health Insurance: Yes It's Possible

Are you wondering how on earth you can get affordable dental health insurance? You are not alone. In this brutal economy, many people are feeling the crunch of the recession, and basic needs such as health insurance and dental insurance are being axed by employers around the clock.

However, you don’t have to despair. It’s not that hard to find some affordable dental insurance plans with a little bit of effort on your part. There are some great dental insurance and affordable dental health plans out, and it’s relatively easy to qualify for instant coverage – no need to wait long periods to get the dental health you and your family need.

Now if you are in the position of waiting to get dental health insurance before you go see the dentist and you are experiencing pain, bleeding, or swelling of the mouth, it’s essential that you see a dentist right away. You may not be covered, but the damage to your mouth – and health – could be severe if you wait. In general, people with healthy gums and teeth should see the dentist once every 6 months.

How Does Dental Insurance Differ from Dental Discount Plans

These are two separate things. Dental health insurance coverage is basically a contractual agreement between an insurance company and your employer to provide affordable dental care and special emergency dental services.

The monthly premium (and any additional amount you pay) is agreed upon by both parties. This is different from discount dental plans because the discount plan is purchased by you yourself. The ultimate costs of all dental services are directly negotiated between the specific dentist and the dental discount provider.

You, as the holder of the dental discount plan, will pay fee (usually nominal) each month and in turn be eligible for discounted dental services. Now the advantage here is that there are no hidden fees, unlike with dental health insurance. Dental discounts usually are about 50% of the normal fee.

Why Do You Need Dental Health Insurance?

You may not feel that you need dental health insurance or a dental discount plan, but in fact, you do. If you don’t have any sort of coverage, you pay the full cost for dental services upfront. These costs can be substantial, since even simple teeth cleaning can run in the hundreds of dollars. Simply seeing a dentist can cost you nearly a hundred bucks and if there is something serious like a root canal or bridging, you will have to pay thousands in dental fees.

People with no coverage rightly fear seeing the dentist because of the costs. However, avoiding the dentist only works for so long – eventually, you will have some sort of tooth problem and then have to pay. It’s likely that your gums and teeth will not be healthy because you don’t see a dentist regularly.

If you are covered, you will naturally see the dentist on a regular basis because the services are either covered are much cheaper.

How Do I apply for a Dental Discount Plan or Dental Insurance

It’s different depending on if you are applying directly yourself or through an employer. If you are doing it yourself, it’s not as daunting as it may seem. There is no need of a special medical exam and there is no special test required. Fill out the application and answer all the questions honestly. If the questions are not relevant, simply fill in “n/a” in the box rather than leaving it blank – this will speed up the process somewhat.

Length of Time Before I Get Approved?

If you are lucky, you may be approved in less than a week. Generally, the companies will need to have your medical information. This may take some time – if this is the case, it may take a couple weeks to be accepted. Once you are finally approved, the insurance starts the first day of the following month. So, for example, say you applied April 5^th and got accepted April 12^th, you would be covered starting from May 1^st.

Why Might I be Rejected?

There are several reason why you may be rejected. If you are currently unemployed, recently graduated, or self employed, you may be rejected. Some insurance policies require a premium to be initially paid, and your financial circumstances may not easily allow that.

Also not that if you are a recent hire for a company, your insurance may not kick in until 90 days have passed – a sort of “probationary” period most companies implement regarding benefits. If you need dental coverage and don’t want to wait, you can opt for a private, affordable dental discount plan to hold you over until your traditional dental insurance coverage kicks in. The advantage dental discount plans have here is that from the moment you pay, they kick in.

Where Do I Get Affordable Dental Health insurance or Affordable Dental Discount plans?

There are many places you can go to get insurance plans and discount coverage plans. However, the best place is on the web. If you look around, it’s easy to see many companies promoting affordable dental health insurance plans. There are also lots of cheap dental discount plans available as well.

If finding cheap dental coverage online is not your thing, you can look through the phonebook for some insurance companies, or ask some friend for their recommendations. However, whatever dental insurance plan you opt to purchase, you need to do some serious research online about that company. There are many affordable dental health insurance plans out there, but you may have to look around to find the best one that suites your needs.