Dental insurance is normally looked at as an add-on to health insurance, and in a lot of cases it is, but more and more insurance carriers are offering stand-alone dental policies.  There is, of course, a great range of benefits and premiums, but this is true with any type of insurance.

A less expensive plan around $15 a month will average two cleanings a year and about $1,000 worth of services.  A more expensive plan around $40 a month has no limits to what the company will pay in a year.

For more information on the stand-alone dental insurance plans available in your area, fill out the form below and submit.

Pre-existing Conditions

• Children can no longer be excluded from coverage because of a pre-existing health problem.
• Adults with pre-existing conditions can seek coverage from the new Pre-existing Condition Insurance Plan.

Insurance Claims

• If sick or injured, insurance companies can no longer put a lifetime dollar cap on benefits.
• There is a new appeal process if an insurer denies a claim.  After the second denial, consumers have the right to an outside, independent review.

Insurance Companies

• Insurance companies must spend 80 or 85 percent or more of premiums on health benefits and quality improvements, instead of for non-health expenses, such as overhead and advertising.  This is great news for consumers because if the 80 to 85 percent standard is not met, the insurance company is writing you a rebate check!
• Insurers that propose to raise premiums by 10 percent or more may now be required to publicly justify these increases.

Know your rights and never be afraid to ask questions of your insurance agent.  When dealing with independent agents, we represent so many different companies that our loyalty always lies with the customer.  It’s our job to research and find the best policy to suit your needs and then assist you through the life of that policy.  If your agent isn’t willing to explain the fine print or help you with claims, then find a new agent.  And if you happen to be looking, you’re in the right place.  Leave your question in the comment field or give us a call at (888) 919-9876.

1. What medical condition could I have?
2. Where should I go for treatment?

Check with your insurance carrier as well.  Several companies have incorporated 24-hour nurse and doctor hotlines into their benefit packages to cut the cost of sometimes unnecessary doctor visits.

Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced Wednesday that the Affordable Care Act provided approximately 54 million Americans with private insurance and 32.5 million people with Medicare at least one new free preventive service in 2011.  If you are currently insured, use your insurance to its fullest and schedule an annual check-up.  If you are currently uninsured, look into it.  You’ll get a lot more for your money this year than in past years.

Click here for a complete list of covered preventative care services.

Click here for a health insurance quote.

This is a true and very sad story as reported by CBS news last year; a man robbed a North Carolina bank to receive medical care in jail.  I really wish he would have called his local insurance agent first because there are other options.  If you can’t afford a low-deductible plan and don’t have the savings to cover a high deductible, supplement a catastrophic policy with accident and critical illness insurance to lower your out-of-pocket expenses.

Fee-for-service plans are another affordable option, along with high-deductible plans that include co-pay benefits.  With both plans you can see a general practitioner or specialist at an affordable price, usually between 20 and 40 dollars.  UnitedHealthOne has a plan called the Copay Select that offers unlimited $35 doctor visit and $15 generic prescription drug co-pays.  Act now before you’re feeling desperate enough to rob a bank; click the banner below to get an instant and free quote for health insurance.

One of the major reasons people get declined for individual health and life insurance is that they don’t fall within the limits of insurance carrier build charts.  Build charts are based on height and weight, and obesity is a declinable condition.  Fortunately, because of health care reform, there are further options to becoming insured if overweight; but unlike a cancer diagnosis on your medical record, weight can be wiped away.

A cancer diagnosis comes with a trigger date, the date an insurance carrier will consider you for coverage again.  But if you lose enough weight to fit within the build chart, you are instantly insurable again with no waiting periods.  Even if you fit within the build chart, losing weight can still help you save money on your monthly insurance premium.  A higher weight can raise premiums 25 to 50-percent.

Body mass index (BMI) measures body fat based on height and weight.  No need to go to the gym or see a nutritionist, you can find your BMI online or on your smart phone.  The free app I downloaded for my iPod Touch is simply called BMI Calculator, but it was one of probably a hundred different apps all offering the same service.  What I like about the BMI Calculator app is that it includes a color-coded chart, so you can track your progress into the green.

The Heart Truth campaign aims to raise awareness among women about their risk for heart disease, “An astonishing 80 percent of women ages 40 to 60 have one or more risk factor for heart disease.”

If you live in the Sarasota/Bradenton area, Sarasota Memorial Hospital is hosting a Cardiac Health Fair February 16, 2012 from 7:30 a.m. until noon where you can get a free heart screening.  Registration is required; call (941) 917-7777.  The first 100 guests will receive a heart-healthy cookbook from the American Heart Association.

I worked for a dentist years ago.  He used to say that the teeth were the most important part of our body because without them we couldn’t eat.  Makes sense, yet most of us don’t like going to the dentist.  Sometimes fear keeps people away from the loud drills and spraying water.  But lately it seems that high prices could be keeping people away, and dental insurance doesn’t usually help much.  It normally doesn’t cover more than routine cleanings, maybe a filling here or there, but certainly not a filling that will match the color of your teeth. That would be way too expensive. And God forbid you need a crown or dentures; you could buy a car for less.

If your teeth are pearly jewels that sparkle every time you smile, then stick with your $10-15 a month routine dental plan.  If your not a Disney prince, then we’ve got a solution to get you back looking like one – affordably.  There are no waiting periods, no deductibles and no maximum spending limits.  It’s an individual plan fashioned after a group plan.  When you need major work done, call us at (888) 919-9876 or click this link: Dental Plan

You have to stay with the plan for six-months at $39.95 a month, but as long as you don’t have a temporary crown or denture in your mouth at the time of enrollment, the plan will cover whatever procedure you need immediately with no waiting period.  Copays are required with the exception of cleanings, xrays and fillings.  Here’s an example of your potential savings on dentures:

Now I can’t account for how accurate it is, it almost seems a little low, but this dental cost calculator allows you to input your city and needed dental service, and it will give you the average cost.  Dentures – both upper and lower – were over $2,800 in my home city of Sarasota, Florida.  With this dental plan, the copay for complete upper and lower dentures is $650.  Now add six-months of premium and the $55 enrollment fee, and the price is still less than half of the average cost: $944.70.  The plan is open to anyone over the age of 18.  Under 18 is eligible to enroll with a parent or guardian.

Here’s the link one more time: Dental Plan and one more story from my days at the dental office: Paula, the dentist’s fun-loving assistant, once talked one of their patients into allowing her to design him a set of festive dentures for Halloween.  They were made out of brown, orange and yellow candy corns, and until the day I die, I will never lose that image from my brain…a 75 year-old man wearing a candy corn denture – what a good sport!