dental insurance

[houseelf]

This is the third year in a row that we have spent a vulgar amount of money on DH's teeth for procedures for which we were uninsured. (I will save the rant that my MIL will spend $500 per child per Christmas but all three of her kids left home with major dental issues and their wisdom teeth intact).

My question for you all is:

Did you have dental insurance during training. We have a very basic dental insurance through my work which basically only pays for routine cleanings. (Even ds's flouride treatments are out-of-pocket! )

Kelly

[mommax3]

We had dental insurance during residency as part of DH's military benefits. He paid a small premium and we were able to get check-ups and fillings, etc. (thankfully that is all we have needed it for!) for free or for very little, with a civilian provider as long as they accept that particular insurance, which hasn't ever been an issue.

DH, on the other hand, sees an active duty dentist as often as he is ordered to do so......the only thing bad about that is that he usually doesn't know very far ahead of time when his command performance in the dentist's chair is supposed to take place, and sometimes has to leave patients unseen so he can "follow orders".

Sally

I selected the first choice. DH's program basically had a cafeteria plan. They gave us an allowance...I think around $650 a month for the resident and spouse...and we could pick whatever health, dental, and vision insurance we wanted. We had Blue Shield PPO and Delta Dental PPO throughout residency and it worked out that we actually got about $40 back a month in DH's paycheck because we underspent our monthly allowance.

Kelly, that sucks that your program doesn't offer coverage. If Blue Shield/Blue Cross and Delta Dental offer individual coverage in your state, you may want to check into signing up for one of their dental plans. I think you can get a decent plan for around $30-$40 a month for the family. I know, I know...another bill...but it might pay off with your husband's teeth issues.

We now have a cafeteria plan similar to what Erica mentioned. The dental insurance is mandatory for DH and is $30 per month. To add me is another $50 (I can't remember how much more for the kids). Since we already use up our allocated benefit with health insurance, I decided to pass on dental. For $50, or $600 per year, that should cover any dental needs.

At least I think so....I just paid $200 for a cleaning and have 4 cavities -- though small. I'll probably come out about even this year. Since having my wisdom teeth removed under our previous dental insurance, I figured I had the most expensive stuff out of the way.

Our previous insurance was full medical and dental at no monthly premium cost to us. My dental benefit capped at $1250 per year. Because of some shoddy dental work from years past, I ended up paying more for the wisdom teeth than I had planned. Not fun money to spend!

At a job a few years ago, I had similar dental coverage. I only had cleanings covered and the other stuff was never paid for -- I could never quite figure that out. Maybe I hadn't met the deductible or i twas out of network.

[SuzySunshine]

I picked the first one but ours is really a vision and dental account. We get $1,000/year then we get reimbursed from that account. It is a nice benefit.

Speaking of dental stuff....I think I need to make an appt for a cleaning since I'm overdue...

[SueC]

We have dental insurance for a small cost, the program is decent--paying $1600 per person anually, though I easily maxed that out last year and am still paying for my root canal.

[DCJenn]

Ditto what Sally said....

We have the military dental coverage. I see a civilian dentist who is fantastic- she is also a military spouse so she completely understands the lifestyle. As a matter of fact, military dentists for a long time had a terrible reputation so she made it her goal to see ex-military ASAP after they left the service.

Jenn

[PrincessFiona]

We had no dental insurance during training either and so we basically avoided going. This has meant some expensive fixes now that we are insured. Speaking of which....we're all overdue for a cleaning etc. :|

[samssugarmomma]

We're insured with the delta dental ppo through my work. We pay 33 bucks every two weeks and only cleanings are covered 100% and fillings are covered 70%.

Is it foolish to ask if residencies offer flexible spending accounts to help offset medical bills? I think I already know the answer.......

Is it foolish to ask if residencies offer flexible spending accounts to help offset medical bills? I think I already know the answer.......

Surprisingly....DH's current program offers those and the previous did too (I think). We've just never been organized enough to take advantage. That and we usually don't have that high of medical expenses but our current insurance does have a deductible so we probably should. Also, both have the childcare flex too.

Just don't ask if they have a 401(k) or similar. Especially one that the employer would contribute to.

[houseelf]

Surprisingly, yes, DH's program offers flexible spending accounts for both day care and health care. We maxed out both accounts in previous years. (Yes DH's teeth are that bad---Mamas don't let your babies grow up to play hockey--or be surgeons for that matter).

I am just shocked at how fast the money goes.

Kelly