Most people understand the importance of medical insurance, but dental insurance often gets neglected. However, good oral health is essential to your overall well-being. Getting your teeth cleaned and combating issues like gum disease is important to making sure that serious infections don’t get into your bloodstream.
If you need dental work done, you might be asking yourself, “What is the average cost of dental insurance?” In this guide, we’ll answer that question and more. Just keep reading.
The Average Cost of Dental Insurance
Believe it or not, the average cost of dental insurance is pretty affordable. The price you pay depends on the plan that you choose, the insurance provider, and the number of people on the plan. Most of the time, if you have an entire family under your dental insurance coverage, it’ll cost more.
For the most part, dental coverage is no more than about $15 to $50 per month, which comes out to about $360 annually. That cost is not bad considering that it includes the semi-annual cleanings that everyone needs to ensure that their teeth are clean and healthy.
Deductibles
As with any insurance plan, deductibles are a usual component of dental insurance. When you’re shopping around for dental coverage, look for a plan with low deductibles. By doing so, it’ll help to keep your overall cost down.
A deductible is the amount that you’ll pay before the insurance kicks in. For instance, if you go to the dentist and your procedure is $45, then you would have to pay that entire amount yourself.
The good news is, deductibles for dental insurance are relatively inexpensive. You may only have to pay about $50 for your deductible, which is great in comparison to medical insurance deductibles. Medical deductibles can be $1,000 or more.
Yearly Maximums
When calculating the average cost of dental insurance, you have to factor in the annual maximum. Unfortunately, some dental plans only allow a certain amount that they’ll pay for procedures. That means, you can’t go to the dentist and get numerous dental procedures, like root canals and braces, and have the insurance pay for it.
Every plan is different, but on average, the annual maximum is between $500 to $1,500. After that amount has been met, any other dental procedures that you have must be paid out of pocket.
Dental Insurance Cost: Co-Pays
In addition to the deductible and yearly maximum, you also have to consider copays when you go to the dentist.
Thankfully, all preventative dental care is covered at 100%. When you go in for a cleaning and x-ray, you won’t pay anything for your visit. Anytime you go in for a routine exam, your insurance covers all of it, and routine checkups occur every six months.
However, if you require additional procedures, then copays become a factor. Typically, the insurance provider will pay 80% of any dental work that you require other than routine care.
For example, if you need your tooth pulled, they’ll pay 80% of it, and the other 20% is your responsibility. If your dentist charges $100 to pull your tooth, your insurance will pay $80, and you’ll have a $20 copay.
But if you require major dental work, your insurance might not cover as much of it. Let’s say you require a root canal. Depending on your plan, your insurance provider might only put 50% towards the total cost of the procedure.
Therefore, if your dentist charges $500 to do a root canal, your insurance will pay $250 and then you’ll pay the other half. This same principle applies to other major procedures like dental crowns.
If you have an issue such as gum disease and you require major dental procedures, as you’re looking for dental insurance, search for insurance providers that offer lots of coverage.
Ways to Save Money on Dental Care
There are several ways that you can save money on dental care, such as:
Taking Care of Your Teeth at Home
Preventative care is key to avoiding extensive dental procedures. If you make sure to brush your teeth regularly and floss, it should reduce your chances of cavities and other oral health issues. That way, the only thing you’ll have to worry about is going for your routine care.
Not only that, but you can try other at-home remedies for your teeth. Instead of going to the dentist to get your teeth whitened, consider doing over-the-counter treatment at home. It’s less expensive and sometimes just as effective.
Stretch Your Routine Exams
You should go get your teeth cleaned professionally every six months. But if you do a good job at home, you may not need to get it done twice a year.
Although preventative care is covered 100%, your insurance provider might put your routine exam towards your annual maximum. So to save money and stretch your benefit, consider going to the dentist once a year.
If you’ve decided to get dental coverage, check out this article about how to get insurance for your dental needs.
The Importance of Buying Dental Insurance
As you can see, the average cost of dental insurance is quite affordable. This is especially true if you don’t have any serious dental issues and only require routine maintenance.
But even if you don’t suffer from poor oral health, you never know when you’ll need to see a dentist. So, it’s important to have dental insurance just in case!
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