General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region Forums3900.00 for a three tooth bridge!!!!!! Plus 200 for a tooth extraction.....
Don't know how we're going to pay for it. .
Fumesucker
(45,851 posts)Or is this an estimate?
yeoman6987
(14,449 posts)I know that would help a great deal. At least lower the stress level some.
Fumesucker
(45,851 posts)If you get a set of impressions from the dentist you can have the bridge made elsewhere, the dentist has a hell of a markup because the techs don't make much.
yeoman6987
(14,449 posts)Big Blue Marble
(5,150 posts)Bridges are a lot more than the lab work. They must be carefully balanced in the mouth.
The margins must be sealed; often the margins are below the gum line and need to be xrayed
to be sure they are sealed and protecting the tooth from further decay.
Fumesucker
(45,851 posts)Big Blue Marble
(5,150 posts)Partials are somewhat simpler than bridges. The sad thing is that dentistry is expensive to receive and it is expensive to deliver just like other areas in medicine. The cost of operating a dental office is a lot more expensive than most people realize.
Recursion
(56,582 posts)REP
(21,691 posts)I have a bridge that is actually a partial plate with two teeth, but due to which teeth are being replaced, a huge framework of metal is the only thing I could have. I think it took 15 fittings to get that thing in my face right! I wonder bore you with the wonders of my nightmare mouth ... except that I'm considering implants.
Big Blue Marble
(5,150 posts)Many struggle with partials. And they are hard on the other teeth. They also can shrink the jawbone
over time. I can identify with your dental struggles; I have had my share also. It is important to
remember that everything dentisty does is a compromise. No solution fully restores our dentition and function.
They all have a downside (at least one).
Having said that, I encourage you to have implants with the caveat that you have enough bone to support them
and are not a smoker. Be sure you have the best oral surgeon you can find. And if you clench, be sure an
get a mouthguard.
I had an implant placed earlier this year. So far so good.
REP
(21,691 posts)I know my teeth root(ed) into my sinuses, and the extractions were done a long time ago (fractured root and failed root canal).
I'm probably not a candidate for implants due to my overall health, especially if a graft is needed, but I'm still going to double check because things change in medicine. I have an unusually tight overbite and my teeth "lock" which is good - I don't grind because I can't - but it also means there's no room for the partial and I can't close my mouth with it in. I thought I'd get used to it, but it's just tiring to try to wear so ... next to find out if I can have expensive oral surgery my insurance won't cover.
Big Blue Marble
(5,150 posts)And you do know that the lab tech could lose his/her license for practicing dentistry.
a kennedy
(29,706 posts)Fumesucker
(45,851 posts)A lot of people find it cheaper to fly to Mexico and have it done, even with the cost of the airfare..
I feel for you, my estimate is about $3500 for everything I need done, it might as well be $35,000 at this point..
a kennedy
(29,706 posts)ScreamingMeemie
(68,918 posts)A lot of them go based on your income, most take payments. Sure, the work takes longer, but it's modern equipment and the work is done by ready-to-graduate dental students overseen by dentists. I had a GREAT experience, and the cost of the root canal, beginning to end, was $290 and I could have made payments.
RKP5637
(67,112 posts)a kennedy
(29,706 posts)might be a possibility, thanks.
TexasBushwhacker
(20,214 posts)She was very happy with it. For a bridge you will probably get a 3rd year student, and all their work has to be inspected and approved by their instructor, who will be a dentist with many years experience.
I will say, if they give you antibiotics, I had a HORRIBLE experience with Clyndimicin. It fouled up my gut but good.
historylovr
(1,557 posts)Iggo
(47,565 posts)And that's WITH insurance!
Dentist is all pissed because I can't afford the implants to replace them.
Dick.
Laura PourMeADrink
(42,770 posts)to find the older, established, one-person offices to go to. I had to have an abscessed tooth extracted and save a ton (they did it for $100)...He had the old timey "put a piece of film" in your mouth - instead of the expensive equipment that takes x-rays of your whole mouth and jaw - but who cares.
restorefreedom
(12,655 posts)and they really pushed the implants. when i realized the cost and number of visits, plus the whole drilling a screw into my jaw thing, i just never bothered. but they pushed hard.
Warpy
(111,339 posts)by doing the extraction and fitting you for the partial or bridge. Around here, we have labs that do partial and full dentures a lot cheaper than a general DDS would. Ask around, you might have the same thing near you.
Also check to see whether a partial would be a bit cheaper than a bridge. You can add teeth to it if you need to down the line, you can remove it to clean it, and best of all, you don't have to drill into healthy teeth to fit it. Downsides: you have to get used to it and you have to take it out to clean it.
LibDemAlways
(15,139 posts)$4000.00 for one crown, and he did a lousy job. He had a dental assistant "fit" the temp, and it was so poorly done, it fell out the next day.
Pays to ask around to find out who's both good and gets the job done at a reasonable cost.
Arugula Latte
(50,566 posts)I just paid $400 for a crown (after insurance, yes, but still, the total price wasn't anywhere near $4,000).
LibDemAlways
(15,139 posts)are involved in the entertainent buisness (I'm not) and have cash to burn, so everyone ends up paying more for services -- everything from overpriced hair cuts to overpriced dental work. I have dental insurance, but with the high deductible and coverage exclusions, it's basically a joke. It took me a year to pay off that one crown. I need more work, but will have to do lots of homework and probably travel a considerable distance to find another dentist who won't rip me off.
Arugula Latte
(50,566 posts)See my post #18 re: Care Credit.
Person 2713
(3,263 posts)LibDemAlways
(15,139 posts)they think nothing of asking for it up front. Tell them you can't pay all at once and they get pissed off and exasperated. I actually watched while the dentist checked my pay record before he got started.
Person 2713
(3,263 posts)Chicago area not a rural area so prices(rent/labor) are high but I never heard of that
Are you forgetting to say there was a root canal included before the crown that was part of the total ? Or it was metal of gold or maybe even a pure porcelain one which is a specialty ?
Otherwise
http://health.costhelper.com/dental-crown.html
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/is-your-dentist-ripping-you-off/
JI7
(89,264 posts)So they can't depend on getting enough regulars for checkup and cleaning.
So they are charging a lot for these other procedures. In some cases it could be questionable.
Laura PourMeADrink
(42,770 posts)to recoup your equipment investments by bilking people. The number 1 procedure to recommend was: "We need to extract all of your wisdom teeth because they will cause you problems down the road"
DUgosh
(3,058 posts)We are picked up on the American side, (Del Rio Texas ) driven over, driven back.
Arugula Latte
(50,566 posts)payment plan. I know it would be a lot to pay even in 12 payments, but it might help for some of it (?). I've paid for things like crowns and wisdom teeth extractions this way.
http://www.carecredit.com/?dtc=N353&Exact=care%20credit&gclid=CLOK8urrhMkCFZWHaQodC70OgA
Recursion
(56,582 posts)https://www.cdhp.org/resources/243-fqhc-handbook-increasing-access-to-dental-care-through-public-private-partnerships
http://www.fqhc.org/find-an-fqhc/
FQHCs receive a grant for a significant part of their operating budget in exchange for providing primary and specialist services on an income-based sliding scale (they also take insurance). Many also provide dental services. It may be worth checking out.
Big Blue Marble
(5,150 posts)instead of a bridge? One implant should cost about the same or even less than a bridge. An implant avoids cutting down other teeth. More importantly, bridges will often lead to root canals in your abutment teeth (the two teeth that support the bridge. Do get an estimate on the implant as well as the bridge.
Either way, do ask your dentist what kinds of payment plans they offer. Most patients do require payment support when facing significant dental treatment. You are not alone.
mnhtnbb
(31,402 posts)at a fraction of the cost of US dental work. (Beware of Mexico for dentistry).
We were in Belize some years ago and toured the country with some ex-pats--from Los Angeles--
who moved there in the late 80's. There are excellent dentists in Belize City. You should
really look into it.
flyingfysh
(1,990 posts)I had to have a tooth surgically removed (about $1500), a titanium implant installed in my jawbone ($2500), and a new tooth installed on top of that (over $3000), but the result is great. The people involved were all affiliated with Harvard Dental School.
Fortunately, I could afford it. Most people probably can't.
easttexaslefty
(1,554 posts)Much less one tooth.
pinboy3niner
(53,339 posts)A tooth or the partial broke on one of my visits to Vietnam. I was staying with Vietnamese friends and a guy in the neighborhood (not really a peasant) happened to do dental work in his living room.
The guy had assisted U.S. military dentists during the war. After the war he pored over dentistry textbooks and scrounged equipment and supplies. He installed a scrounged dental chair in his living room and began taking patients.
The partial he made for me was better than anything I had gotten from the U.S. military or the VA. I didn't give him the 25 bucks he asked for. (I thought he deserved a lot more to help with his education. )
Herebuddy
(8 posts)Why didn't you give him the $25?
pinboy3niner
(53,339 posts)I paid him far more than the $25 he asked for, to support his enterprise and his education.
Laura PourMeADrink
(42,770 posts)who are doing well can afford dental work.
Really a tragedy. Bright side, perhaps obesity levels will decline.
TheFrenchRazor
(2,116 posts)Person 2713
(3,263 posts)area that fits them .only place I'd ever seen them offered as an alternative but maybe it's just herethat there is a class difference in what different dentist will mention
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Removable_partial_denture
You have to flip it in and out for eating etc that's why the one tooth ones are called that
restorefreedom
(12,655 posts)but maybe a fundme account? i have seen people ask for money to pay off their credit cards and to pay for in vitro fertility treatments. a needed dental procedure would certainly qualify imo.
good luck to you. another sad example of how this is becoming a world for the "haves" only
ChisolmTrailDem
(9,463 posts)...if not the whole way, and then some.
Couldn't hurt to try.
restorefreedom
(12,655 posts)there are campaigns raising money for wedding expenses and honeymoon trips! certainly a needed dental expense would get some attention i would hope
a lot of fundraising for good causes. it is heartening but at the same time discouraging. if people want to try to raise money to have the trip of a lifetime that's their business, but people shouldn't have to go online and try to raise money to pay for medical care in 2015, that just appalling imo.
a lot of vet bills for dogs that were hit by cars, etc. very generous people contributing to many causes.
Orrex
(63,224 posts)ChisolmTrailDem
(9,463 posts)Orrex
(63,224 posts)flamingdem
(39,321 posts)but I had a great dentist and it hasn't caused me any problems.
I wasted money getting a consult for an implant. So glad I didn't do that with having to take antibiotics and it's more pricey.
So the only silver lining is that it's the way to go but make sure your dentist is very good for that price.
Romulox
(25,960 posts)haele
(12,676 posts)Historically, dentistry was cosmetic - basically pulling bad or painful teeth and fitting dentures to replace them (rather than medical services for the mouth), which was why you went to your barber to get your dentistry done - a good barber was trained in various cosmetic methods to help one look acceptable. It was technical work back in the day - my great-grandfather was a barber/dentist up until the 1920's, until California required all dentists to be licensed through a representative professional association as they did doctors and surgeons.
Likewise, anything dealing with correcting vision was pretty much done by a person with a scientific background who had trained himself (or herself) to work with lenses to bring objects into focus. If you didn't read or drive, it usually didn't matter if your vision was poor, so glasses were something professional people or wealthy people needed.
Neither service required a hospital or medical clinic services. While there was a historic "split" between doctors, pharmacists, and surgeons in terms of technical requirements and education, all considered medical professions. Dentistry was a cosmetic profession (it was nice to have teeth, but you didn't need them to eat), and optometry provided a "tool" that wasn't required to survive in most cases.
That's the "traditional" reasons.
Cost is another reason. Yearly dental visits and dental maintenance are more expensive than yearly medical visits, and people who go to the dentist typically either "don't need the services" or need lots of service. That's ends up insurance wise as sort of a half and half situation - half the people who go to a dentist regularly don't need to go other than as a checkup and cleaning costing at least twice as much and lasting far longer than an annual doctor's visit and lab work does, and half go in needing xrays, drilling and fillings, crowns, non-cosmetic braces, or other expensive services. Also, the issue of what is medically necessary and what is cosmetic comes into question - especially with orthodontia.
Likewise, most people don't need the time and expense to see an optometrist on a yearly basis and can make due with a doctor with an eye chart; going to see and optometrist also requires an extended visit using equipment that is expensive to maintain just to verify that there has not been a change in vision quality. Also, purchase of corrective lenses and frames can wander into the cosmetic zone, and lord knows, insurance can't cover things that are purchased just because they help the patient "look nice" or look more professional.
Now, dental and optical is considered medical care when it comes to reconstructive or a symptomatic situation where there is an underlying medical or situational cause (rather than hereditary or "poor habits/lack of care" . But including those as part of medical care needs to be carefully documented to be covered (i.e., accident insurance claims), and they can't be the primary reasons to seek medical care.
I do know someone who got dental care included due to cancer of the jaw. But that's not a way that I would want my dental to be covered...
Anywhere, there's my guess.
Haele
easttexaslefty
(1,554 posts)off denistry is, several months ago. It's quickly becoming out of reach for many.
I'm sorry. I understand.
Big Blue Marble
(5,150 posts)that dentistry has become so unaffordable. It is the fact we are not paying our workers enough
to take care of themselves.
Dentistry done right is far from a ripoff. It is an essential part of health care. Without good dentition,
we cannot eat or nourish ourselves. Unhealthy gums lead to heart disease. Dental abscesses kill.
Being a dentist is one of the more stressful careers one can choose; at the same time one of the
most rewarding. Seeing people's life transformed with good dentistry, is what keeps most dentists
going. I assure you most are not wealthy.
A world without dentists would be a world I certainly would not choose. Would you?
flamingdem
(39,321 posts)when I learned that I stopped thinking of him as a rich guy. He's a good guy.