Dental Insurance Articles
How Wisdom Teeth Procedures Are Covered By Dental Insurance Policies
2011-05-30
Wisdom teeth extractions are, unfortunately, something that almost all of us have had to or will have to endure at some point during our adult lives. While no one looks forward to it, we all have to prepare for it. The best way to do this, obviously, is to obtain dental insurance. But how do dental insurance plans treat wisdom teeth extractions? Read on to find out!
Wisdom teeth are what are called "basic" treatments. They are covered by most plans to a high percentage, meaning little out of pocket cost to you. This varies from plan to plan, however; some low-cost plans are specifically designed to cover the insured in the event of "major" treatments and provide little coverage for procedures like wisdom teeth extractions.
If you are preparing to get your wisdom teeth extracted, first you should check with your policy to find out the percentage or co-pay you are responsible for with a basic procedure. If, for example, the dentist charges $300 for this treatment and your insurance policy covers 50% of basic treatments, you are initially responsible for $150. If instead it is a set co-pay, for example $100 across the board for basic treatments you pay that instead.
That's not all, though. You also need to check your deductible. If your deductible for the year is $200, even if your insurance plan covers 50% in the above example you will still need to pay the full deductible amount if you haven't already that year. That means if you haven't had any other treatments in the calendar year, you would have to pay the whole $200 in the above example.
Another place people get caught up is the maximum benefits payable. Plans almost universally have a yearly limit on how much they are willing to pay out. This could be as low as $500, or as high as $5,000; it varies from plan to plan. If you are on a family plan and your insurance plan has been in heavy use due to your spouse or children, you may be surprised to find out you've already elapsed your maximum benefits for the year. You can contact your insurance company to double check on this; it's better to be safe than sorry!
Dental insurance plans are vital to families these days. Especially with medical costs rising, few can be afford to be caught without insurance when a treatment is needed. Still, dental insurance plans are rarely "catch-all" plans, and there are almost always limitations on what they will pay for. In the case of wisdom teeth extractions, this is doubly true since it is beyond the scope of "preventative" medicine.