Insurance

If we have received your current dental insurance information at the time of your appointment, we will be happy to file your claim for you.  In order to file your claims, we will need a copy of your dental policy.  Your employer is legally required to give you a copy of your policy.  It is helpful for you to be familiar with your insurance benefits.  At each appointment, you will be expected to pay the estimated amount, which the insurance will not cover.  By law, your insurance company is required to pay each claim within 30 days of receipt.  We file all claims within a day of treatment.  You are responsible for any balance on your account after 30 days whether or not your insurance has made a payment.  We will be glad to send a refund once your insurance has paid us.  After 60 days, an account is considered delinquent. 

It is your responsibility to keep us informed of any changes with your dental insurance.  This is important to avoid delays regarding filing claims and receiving timely payments. 

*Please understand that we file your claims as an office courtesy to our patients.  You are ultimately responsible for your insurance.  We are not responsible for how your insurance company handles its claims or for what benefits they pay on a claim.  We will submit whatever information is needed in order to obtain coverage for the treatment provided.  We cannot guarantee what your insurance will or will not do with each claim.  We also are willing to submit a pre-treatment estimate on your behalf before the work is scheduled to find out what kind of coverage you can expect.  We can not be responsible for any errors in filing your insurance claims, as again we file your claims as a courtesy to you.  Please understand that we base our recommended treatment on what is best for your dental health and not on what an insurance may or may not cover. 

Important facts regarding dental insurance:

fact #1    NO INSURANCE COMPANY PAYS 100% OF ALL PROCEDURES

Many patients think that their insurance pays 90-100% of all dental fees.  However, even when they state a certain percentage of coverage, it is usually of their fees (which are almost always different than ours).  The average coverage for most insurance companies is usually 100% for preventative, 80% for basic, and 50% for major.  The percentage paid is usually determined by how much you or your employer has paid for coverage or the type of contract your employer has set up with the insurance company.  Each company is different and has many different plans to choose from.   

fact #2   BENEFITS ARE NOT DETERMINED BY OUR OFFICE

Each insurance company set their own fee schedules and each determine which procedures they consider “allowable.”  These allowable fees may vary widely.  These “allowable” fees are set by the insurance company so they can make a profit.  You may notice that your insurer reimburses you or the dentist at a lower rate than the dentist's actual fee.  Often insurance companies state that the reimbursement was reduced because your dentist’s fee has exceeded their usual and customary (UCR) fee used by their company.  This statement gives the impression that any fee greater than the amount paid by the insurance company is unreasonable or above what most dentists in the area charge.  This is misleading and inaccurate. 

Unfortunately, insurance companies imply that your dentist is “overcharging” instead of saying that they are “underpaying” or that their benefit coverage is low.   Most of the time, the less expensive insurance policy will use a lower usual and customary (UCR) figure.

Fact #3  SOME INSURANCE COMPANIES REIMBURSE THE PATIENT DIRECTLY

In this case, it is your responsibility to forward the insurance check to our office.  As an alternative, you can pay our office in full at the time of service, and then keep the insurance check when you receive it.  (Delta Dental is one of the more common companies who may do this). 

Payment Options

Patients who are uninsured will be required to pay for service at the time treatment is performed.  We are willing to work out payment plans if they are arranged with Sherry or Irene prior to treatment.  We can spread payments out over a three month period with no finance charges.  For your convenience, we accept cash, personal checks, debit cards, and most major credit cards such as:  Visa, MasterCard, American Express, and Discover.  If you are unable to remit payments over a three month period to pay off your balance, we also work with a finance company which will provide a 12 month interest-free payment plan for your convenience. 

Appointments

Appointment times are reserved exclusively for each patient.  We ask that you please notify our office at least 24 hours prior to your appointed time if you are unable to keep your appointment.  We realize that unexpected things can happen; however, another patient who needs care could be scheduled if we have sufficient time to contact them.  There is a 24 hour cancellation fee for any appointment missed without 24 hour notice. 

We continue to strive for excellent patient care.  In order to obtain this, we ask that you respect our office policy.  We are happy to answer any questions regarding out policy.  Thank you for allowing us to provide you with the best dental care.