Looking for affordable Cincinnati dental insurance? You've come to the right place.
Now a lack of dental coverage stems from several factors, including its high costs and a lack of accessibility for many employers to find the right plans for their workers.
The bills related to major dental problems out of network, however, can be considerable. Since 40 percent of Americans lacked dental insurance according to U.S. News, people are seeing the dentist less and letting their oral health problems get worse.
Many people are only concerned with how much dental insurance plans cost for themselves or their workers. They should be worried about how much not having dental insurance will cost when their oral health problems become unavoidable.
Our goal is to not let a lack of information be the reason that you don’t get the dental insurance you need.
This guide goes over what dental insurance is, how much it usually costs, and why Wilson Insurance Group can help you save money on oral health with affordable plans, whether they’re for you or your employees.
What Is Dental Insurance?
Dental insurance helps patients by paying a certain amount of the costs of their dental procedures. This includes preventive care, minor procedures like fillings, and some major ones as well. This coverage comes at the cost of a monthly premium, just like health insurance.
Dental insurance also has a deductible, which is the amount that has to be paid out of pocket before the plan starts paying for part or all of the services. The lower the deductible, the more quickly the insurance will start covering your bills.
After meeting the deductible, patients are responsible for paying part of the expenses covered by the plan, which is called coinsurance. Copays for visits to the dentist are also a common practice, regardless of the services rendered, as well as for X-rays.
Dental insurance can be purchased by individuals, or an employer can purchase a group dental plan for their workers. These plans have an extensive network of doctors and allow employers to deduct premium payments.
What Does It Cover?
Dental insurance covers small procedures as well as some or all of the cost of large procedures, depending on the policy. Once the deductible is paid, the patient is responsible for coinsurance, which is usually 20-30% of the cost of the procedure. The insurance company pays the rest.
Not all procedures are covered, but most preventive care coverage includes routine exams, cleanings, and some tests like X-rays. Additional image tests can require a copay for the visit, though some plans waive this fee as well. Basic oral care services like extractions and fillings are usually covered, as well as major procedures like root canals and crowns.
These procedures are usually not covered 100%, but a coinsurance pay of 20-30%, the average for most plans, is far better than paying for the whole procedure out of pocket. It’s also important to keep in mind that most dental insurance plans have a maximum amount they’re willing to cover as well, which is usually around $2,000 but varies between plans.
How Much Does Dental Insurance Typically Cost?
After all this information about deductibles, coinsurance, and maximums, you’re probably still wondering what dental insurance will cost you out of pocket in a practical sense. Practically, we can’t give a set number because plans run at different costs for different needs, between companies, and offer different benefits that have to be weighed as factors to the cost. However, we can give you an estimate.
The “premium,” if you’re wondering what that word means, is simply the amount out of pocket that you pay the insurance carrier to give you coverage. The cost is fixed per month and remains constant throughout your insurance plan’s active policy period. Plans usually last a year before they have to be renewed and the rates change.
So how much is this premium? Every situation is different, but private plans cost on average between $15 and $50 a month. That’s around $350 a year for Cincinnati dental insurance on average. Remember that plans have different maximum benefit coverage limits and different services. So you’ll likely want to aim for the middle of that price range to get the most benefits for the lowest cost.
How Cincinnati Dental Insurance Saves You Money
You may have heard people say that dental insurance costs about as much as a dentist’s visit so it’s not worth the hassle. Even if this were true, however, this is precisely the reason that Ohio dental insurance is essential.
People who say that are advocating what’s called reactive care. It means that they’re only paying for dental services once the need comes up. The problem with this is that these people are less likely to go to their recommended twice-annual visit, which includes exams, cleaning, and x-rays. Since they don’t go as often, they’re more likely to let cavities sit in their mouth and get worse. About a third of adults have cavities and don’t know it, which can lead to major problems.
Out Of Pocket Expenses
The average cost of a filling is around $175. This means that after just two normal fillings, not including the cost of the exam, a patient will have paid out of pocket the average cost of a year’s worth of dental insurance. In addition, cavities that aren’t treated right away can fester and degrade the tooth, leading to more expensive procedures like root canals and crowns to become necessary to save a damaged tooth. These procedures can cost $1,000 or more.
If you don’t get dental cleanings regularly, when you do finally go, they may have to do a deep cleaning, which is more expensive and has additional costs for anesthesia as well. It’s easy to see how out of pocket dental costs can quickly add up to being more than a yearly dental insurance plan.
The savings have a snowballing effect as well because when you have an insurance plan, you are more likely to go to the dentist twice a year, as recommended. This means you can catch problems like cavities before they require expensive procedures to remedy. Reducing plaque buildup in scheduled cleanings reduces the chance of needing a deep cleaning as well.
The cost of two regular cleanings or even just a routine filling adds up to the cost of an average yearly dental plan. Those who forgo plans assume they can avoid the dentist altogether. But this will eventually lead to expensive procedures, not to mention a lot of pain.
Why Wilson Insurance Group for Cincinnati Dental Insurance
Wilson Insurance Group offers advantageous plans for Cincinnati dental insurance shoppers. With benefits consultants on staff who have worked for 30 years, we've seen it all.
Individual Dental Insurance
For individuals, we'll be able to direct you to the best plan that meets your exact needs. Give us a call at (513) 984-5991 and we'll take care of you like family.
Employer Dental Insurance
For employers, we understand that many are used to offering self-funded dental coverage, so we offer level-funded plans to take the best of both types and combine it into one plan. This cuts down on the number of plans that employers need to offer their employees, allowing them to reduce costs for their sponsored insurance plans.
Self-funded plans do not have a set monthly premium, but level-funded plans do, just like conventional dental insurance. This consistency gives employers the chance to budget for the insurance costs ahead of time. Level-headed premiums are separated into three categories: stop-loss coverage, administrative fees, and projected claims. These take the predicted health risk of the employees into account before calculating the employer’s group premium.
Unlike traditional employer-employee health coverage plans, level-funded dental plans at Wilson Insurance offer refunds on premiums, medically underwritten plans, and access to monthly reporting so they can keep track of the cause of their expenditures.
Since these plans take risk into account, the employees’ health can raise or lower the premium. With level-funded plans, employers can receive money back if the plan ends and they paid more into the plan than they received. In other words, this type of insurance rewards employers for buying insurance for healthy employees.
Level-funded plans through Wilson Insurance Group are ideal for small businesses in the Cincinnati area. Especially if their margins are thin, level-funded plans offer savings no matter how large or small the employee base is, owing to the consistency of the premiums and the possibility of refunds at the end of the term.
Keep in mind that schools and churches cannot apply for level-funded dental coverage plans.
Key Benefits to Level-Funded Plans
Stable premiums that cost less than standard employee dental plans
No monthly association fees
Reports are available to review the history of employees’ monthly claims
Employers can receive refunds
Fewer federal restrictions on eligibility
Conclusion
Dental insurance is valuable for employers that want to offer complete packages to their employees as well as individuals that know the importance of regular dental care. The minimum recommended dental work is likely to cost as much or more than the average dental plan per year. With insurance, you also have a safety net for unpredictable (and costly) procedures.
Wilson Insurance Group offers many advantageous plans, including their level-funded health insurance packages for employers. These plans combine the advantages of self-funded and group-funded plans to give employers more control over their benefits, fewer government restrictions, and a stable benefits package for their employees.
Contact Wilson Insurance Group in Cincinnati to view your eligibility for individual, group, or level-funded health insurance plans for you or your employees.