Today I had the pleasure of paying a visit to the dentist to have him look at a tooth that failed last night. These kinds of visits will be regular occurrences for the rest of my life, because I'm a dental cripple.
The dental office graciously made room in their schedule for me, and built up the tooth in preparation for having a crown put on. Since my appointment was short-notice, it took a bit longer to get in and out than if I had scheduled it a few weeks in advance. When they called me this morning, they asked me to be patient as they fit me in, so I knew going in that it would take a bit. Overall, though, they really did bend over backwards (and have for years!)
Networks come and go
Because of my dental crippleness (crippletude? cripplacity?) we have elected supplemental dental insurance through my workplace. It usually takes supplemental insurance to get cost breaks on anything more costly than cleanings, sealants, and fillings.
And I now make it a point to verify that the dentist not only accepts my supplemental dental insurance, but also that they're in-network. I learned the hard way that not asking both of these questions can be very costly, because a dentist can accept the insurance, but not be in-network. Translation: expensive stuff isn't covered at all.
When I asked today if they'd be continuing to be in-network with our current insurance next year, they said no. Then they gave me a list of the ones which would be in-network. We'll go through this list soon, because open season for our medical and dental plans is coming up.
Checklist for evaluating your coverage
Here are a few things that it will pay to consider if you're now able to make changes to your coverages:
- Ask the provider which networks they'll be in next year. This is to evaluate whether you'll need to change insurance, change providers, or change both. Or, you may be able to keep things just as they are, as we have for the past few years. Plan to ask a few months before the end of the year.
- Ask again just prior to making the election. Things change, and you wouldn't want to make a decision based on outdated information.
- Discuss the current arrangement with your spouse (if applicable). This decision is just like any other joint money decision. A while back I requested of my wife that she and our daughter go to the same dentist I was going to, because their visits were covered more than at the dentist they had been going to (who was nearby). If changes need to be made, then discussing as a couple leads to a good solution for everyone.
- Review the options available. Specifically with regard to covered expenses, and providers.
- Make the election in plenty of time. I (foolishly) waited until the last minute a couple of years ago, and by all accounts should have missed the deadline. Not again. 🙂
With a few specific questions and a small amount of planning, you can make sure that you're getting your money's worth from your medical and dental coverage.
