Now is the perfect time to review your remaining dental insurance benefits. Oftentimes, insured don’t realize that they haven’t used up all of their dental benefits and still have a remaining balance at their disposal. This amount will be lost and not carried over to the following year if not taken advantage of during the current year.
1. Did you make use of biannual standard exams and cleaning?
Most insurance provide 2 standard exams and cleaning every year. This is a very important step to keep a close eye on the dental health and try to diagnose any issues early on that can help in preventing costly treatment later if left undiagnosed or untreated.
2. Did you already reach your annual deductible?
Co-pays and any out-of-pocket expenses that aren’t covered under your dental insurance plan can be paid for with your remaining Flex Spending balance. If you are enrolled in Flex Spending, use up any balance that you have left over in your account before the year is up in order to avoid losing that money. This can be used towards taking care of your dental treatment.
3. Check on your yearly maximum allowance for dental treatment
The yearly maximum is the most money that the dental insurance plan will pay for your dental work within one full year. This amount varies by insurance company, but the average is around $1,000 per year, per person in your family. The yearly maximum usually renews every year (on January 1, if your plan is a calendar year). If you have unused benefits, you will lose them because they will not rollover to the next year, you will start over again.
4. Dental problems can worsen
Avoiding dental appointments or putting off procedures will cost you in the long run, since you won’t use up the dental insurance benefits that are taken out of your paycheck every month. Putting off procedures also ends up costing you more health-wise, since dental issues such as decay and cavities often become substantially worse if not treated immediately.
5. Fees increase
Another reason to use your dental benefits before the end of the year is possible fee increases. Some dentists raise their fees at the beginning of the New Year due to the increased cost of living, materials and equipment. A fee increase also can make your co-payment higher.
At Bliss Dental we will help you make the best use of your remaining dental benefits and provide you with a great smile for upcoming holidays.