subject: A Crisis In Dental Coverage? [print this page] In an article last week about the dental industry, it was argued that the American Dental Industry, much like the Medical Industry, is about to face a major crisis. The article claims that for a variety of reasons, the turmoil is evident, and there hasn't been much focus on it to spread awareness about the changes in dental insurance plans.
Is this true? Is dental care really hitting a rut, a roadblock? Or can we look at this in a different way? The author of the article reported "Whereas only 10.3 percent of physician costs, 3.3 percent of hospital care, and 26.8 percent of nursing-care expenses were paid out-of-pocket in 2007, Americans paid 44.2 percent of dental bills themselves." Does this mean that dental bills are overly expensive, or, could we interpret this to simply mean that people have a good, firm understanding of their dental pricing when compared to medical fees? It's not right to think that people aren't paying as much for medical care; it's just that many of the associated costs are hidden or foreign.
In a different article from Forbes, Joshua Zumbrun talks about "how affordable some options for dental care are, mentioning the student clinic at NYU. I've been there, incidentally, as a close friend of mine went to dental school at NYU. The clinic is crazy cheap, after a student looks you over, one of the real dentists comes by to double check, it's clean, if a bit crowded." He goes on to say that basic dental coverage is fairly cheap, and that regular insurance can typically be bought for about $25 monthly, which is reasonable when compared to traditional, medical healthcare costs.
For those who need operations, like root canals and wisdom tooth extractions, standard dental insurance may not be the best option - it likely will not cover expensive surgical procedures. However, it is extremely rare that this is ever the case, and most dental procedures are not priced overly high - unlike the fees their medical counterparts charge for procedures and tests. And what if you do have to pay an overly expensive bill? Zumbrun will tell you to just borrow it, stating "I borrowed money to go to school. Some people, because of their parents, or a work benefit, or a scholarship, or whatever, went to school for much less or even for free. But I don't consider it some grave injustice that I took out some loans when others didn't." Take out a loan or ask for assistance. Education is important, and so is your oral health. There is a true and meaningful parallel here.
The main point is, there is likely no dental healthcare crisis that is either prevalent or on the rise in the United States. While there are some up front expenses, and some people have limited or zero dental coverage, the industry is in much better shape that the medical healthcare industry. Paying out of pocket might be frustrating, and out of pocket expenses might be higher on a percentage basis, but overall costs and benefits are definitely very reasonable within dental healthcare. The American system, at this point, actually seems to be working very well.
by: Paul Guenther
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