Dental Insurance for Seniors

Dental discount plans may be a better option as compared to dental insurance, for seniors may find it difficult to handle the restricting clauses or cope with the higher premiums that are characteristic of individual dental insurance...

The exorbitant cost of dental care has made it mandatory for people to have dental insurance. About 97 percent of the insured population opt for dental health insurance plans that are employment based. This is because employer based dental insurance is a group dental insurance plan that has lower premium requirements as against individual dental insurance. The employer has the option of providing one of the following coverages to employees:

Indemnity Plans

Direct Reimbursement Plans

Managed Care Plans

Problems Associated with Dental Insurance for Seniors

Managed care plans are the cheapest, and as a consequence, most employers have shifted to these from the erstwhile popular traditional insurance plans. Managed care plans force the insured to choose from the given network of doctors and do not provide coverage for pre-existing conditions.

Traditional insurance plans result in the insured receiving only the cheapest treatment according to the Least Expensive Alternative Treatment (LEAT) clause, although one has the option of choosing the doctor. Again, pre-existing conditions are not covered by the plan.

The best dental insurance plan for people who are employed, is definitely the Direct Reimbursement Plan, which in addition to being the only plan that covers pre-existing conditions, also provides the benefit of deductible premiums to employers. However, there is the danger of the amount not being reimbursed by the insurance company.

Since the aforementioned plans are usually employment based, and have certain restricting clauses as far as treatment and payment is concerned, these are not suitable for seniors. Hence, the need for alternatives to dental insurance for seniors has assumed a great deal of importance.

Alternative to Dental Insurance for Seniors

Dental Discount Plans have assumed a great deal of significance from the perspective of ensuring cost effective treatment without the usual hassles that are associated with dental insurance. These plans are an alternative to insurance. The plan works by allowing members to save up to 60 percent on various procedures like cleanings, fillings, braces, checkups and more. Some of the advantages of dental discount plans include:

No Waiting Period: People have to pay an annual or a monthly fee in order to become members. The membership card generally arrives within 7 to 10 days of joining the plan. The procedure for becoming a member does not require extensive paperwork. Moreover, there is no waiting period clause unlike Traditional dental insurance and Managed Care plans. Direct Reimbursement plan is the only insurance plan that does not have any waiting period requirement but costs more and is typically employment based.

Cost Effective: The annual membership fee is generally around $100. The members have the option of visiting participating dentists nationwide and availing discounts by showing the membership card. Members receive a discounted fee schedule for almost all procedures and the least savings may be to the tune of 10 percent. The maximum savings, as mentioned earlier, is around 60 percent for certain procedures. Amongst dental insurance plans, managed care plans are the cheapest, but force people to choose from a narrow network of dentists. In addition to discounts on dental procedures, people may receive discounts related to vision, hearing and chiropractic care as well.

Less Encumbrances: These plans have less encumbrances as compared to other dental insurance plans, since they do not involve filing claims and other forms for pre-determining benefits. In most cases, there are no plan deductibles or limitation on benefits. Unlike insurance, that does not cover cosmetic dental procedures, dental discount plans may provide discounts on procedures such as bonding or veneer.

It's evident that dental discount plans provide a number of facilities that may be unavailable to people opting for dental insurance. Seniors, who cannot rely on employer based dental insurance, can benefit to a great extent from these dental discount plans. So much so that dental discount plans have become synonymous with dental insurance for seniors.