Pain of dental fees mounts for Albertans

[Sr. Mints]

I had two personal blue cross plans, and actually cancelled the dental one last last year. It cost me $444 per year (and was set to go up) and offered $500 dental coverage. The second plan has no dental (I don't know why.)

Complete bull####.

[Erick Estrada]

I have never had my own coverage cover an entire dental bill as my wife's coverage always covers the rest. Seems to me that Alberta dentists are taking advantage of the fact that the incomes are higher than other areas of the country. It really does suck for the people that don't make average wages or don't have coverage.

I don't know if adding it to health care is the issue though as it's a lot of money.

[Ducay]

And the cost of vision care might leave you seeing double

[bizaro86]

Originally Posted by GGG

Outside of smoking I would argue that most health conditions that need treatment are not preventable in the same way root canals and cavities are. Accidents by their very definition are not preventable.

As a society we need to draw a line on what we cover. I'm fine with dental for adults being outside that line.

According to this: http://www.smoke-free.ca/factsheets/...rative2012.pdf an Alberta smoker pays ~$1800/year in tobacco taxes on average. I have no idea what it costs to treat lung cancer (my guess would be ~$150,000, but i have no basis for it). On the other hand, not everyone gets lung cancer who smokes, and some people who die from lung cancer would have had some other costly disease later that health care doesn't end up paying for.

Just some food for thought, I'm not sure what you could tax to pay for dental care that would be reasonable (coffee and soda?).

[CliffFletcher]

Surprised nobody has mentioned the recent trend of dentists recommending cleanings and check-ups every three or four months. Hey, your benefits provider will cover it, so why not?

[Sylvanfan]

Yeah, mine claims scaling every 6 months....because it's more work if done once a year.....Last dentist I had thought every year was plenty good enough.

My wife and I both have coverage so pretty much everything is 100% coverage until we hit our plan limits. But year as soon as the plan gets close to limits the message is...that really can wait till your plan resets, from URGENT! Still I think when the dentist gets new clients with this kind of coverage he's either thinking, I can afford a new boat, or two more of these and I can afford another ex-wife...

[Fire]

Originally Posted by CliffFletcher

Surprised nobody has mentioned the recent trend of dentists recommending cleanings and check-ups every three or four months. Hey, your benefits provider will cover it, so why not?

People have dental plans that cover cleanings every 3 months? My dental plan only covers cleaning/check-ups every 9 months.

[GP_Matt]

Maybe just a tax on municipalities who don't have fluoride in their drinking water.

[4X4]

Sorry for the bump, but I have to let people know that the place called Dentistry For Children in Midnapore is an absolute ripoff, and if you get referred there, don't even bother calling. Find a better place like Deer Valley Dentist that will do kids' cavities. They are not only insanely overpriced, they also embellish what needs to be done. And the worst part about that place is that they are so busy, you have to wait like 3 months for them to do the work. Unreal. I am so glad I followed my gut and decided to call another place. Doesn't even matter that benefits was going to pay for most of it, I refuse to give my money, or my insurance company's money to a place that is so blatantly ripping people off (5x as much!).

[harmony]

http://calgaryherald.com/news/local-...ys-u-s-website

http://www.albertadentalassociationproblems.com/

We got some serious problems here actually.

[CaramonLS]

$280 for Xrays / Dentist's time.

[BlackArcher101]

Hey, they have to pay the hygienists 6 figure income and office trips to Vegas somehow. Its a tough world out there.

[cupraisedn89]

I was told I need a crown porcelain metal for a tooth plus coloured to match the rest of my teeth, the estimate came in at just under 1500 bucks and my benefits will cover 50% so looking to fork over almost $750 dollars. Anyone know if it's worth calling around or is this pretty standard

[Dion]

Originally Posted by BlackArcher101

Hey, they have to pay the hygienists 6 figure income and office trips to Vegas somehow. Its a tough world out there.

And they all live on nice acreages. The business is a license to print money.

[Tron_fdc]

Originally Posted by 4X4

Sorry for the bump, but I have to let people know that the place called Dentistry For Children in Midnapore is an absolute ripoff, and if you get referred there, don't even bother calling. Find a better place like Deer Valley Dentist that will do kids' cavities. They are not only insanely overpriced, they also embellish what needs to be done. And the worst part about that place is that they are so busy, you have to wait like 3 months for them to do the work. Unreal. I am so glad I followed my gut and decided to call another place. Doesn't even matter that benefits was going to pay for most of it, I refuse to give my money, or my insurance company's money to a place that is so blatantly ripping people off (5x as much!).

If you are having trouble getting your kid in to see a dentist, I HIGHLY recommend Crystal Smiles in Okotoks. My 7yr old step son had a bunch of cavities he needed taken care of, but was TERRIFIED of the dentist. We tried a few places and he wouldn't even open his mouth. Went to Crystal Smiles and they talked him through the entire procedure and he watched a movie while they were working. The hygienists and dentist were amazing, and we never had a problem getting appointments scheduled. They don't specialize in kids, but they're definitely good with them.

I had my teeth done at the same time, and it was only $200 for a cleaning and x rays. It's definitely reasonable.

[harmony]

Originally Posted by cupraisedn89

I was told I need a crown porcelain metal for a tooth plus coloured to match the rest of my teeth, the estimate came in at just under 1500 bucks and my benefits will cover 50% so looking to fork over almost $750 dollars. Anyone know if it's worth calling around or is this pretty standard

$1500? what alloy is he recommending? high noble? semi? non-precious? actually, even if it's the high noble, it's a major rip off. I've only seen prices at around $1000-$1100. considering that they're getting the teeth made at $200-$300, $1500 is an insane markup.

[speede5]

I don't know what the answer is, but my dental treatment in the civilian world is way better than what I got in the military. I had a missing tooth that required a bridge, the military wouldn't spend the money so I lived with a retainer with the missing tooth on it for years.

I also have a crown that I probably wouldn't have in the military but tat made my life so much nicer.

I can see public funded dental being the same, nothing but preventative and repairs. Having benefits through work, and paying a premium for max coverage is my best option.

I think we should have a system that helps people with no benefits and on welfare though, But with the industry being so lucrative I can see staffing would be difficult. Plus a bit of oversight on dentists would be nice. When they know you have benefits they tend to try and squeeze in as many extras as they can.

[speede5]

Originally Posted by harmony

$1500? what alloy is he recommending? high noble? semi? non-precious? actually, even if it's the high noble, it's a major rip off. I've only seen prices at around $1000-$1100. considering that they're getting the teeth made at $200-$300, $1500 is an insane markup.

Really, My last crown cost close to $1500. I just had a replacement put on the same tooth as the original broke and it was $1100.

[Calgary14]

Lots of Albertans heading out of province for dental work.

http://calgaryherald.com/news/local-...ce-dental-work

[Wormius]

I was just comparing dental costs with my parents in BC. I had to confirm that the price they told me was for a cleaning AND check up. It seemed too low. If my insurance didn't cover dental, I would be packing up the family and scheduling a dental vacation to BC every once in a while.