November and December are the perfect time to tie up loose ends in preparation for the New Year, especially where your oral health is concerned. Dr. Jeffrey Leibowitz, a general dentist in upstate New York, emphasizes that the end of the year is an ideal time to squeeze in one last dental checkup or professional teeth cleaning before January 1st, especially if you plan to use your dental insurance benefits. If you have waited longer than six months since your last exam, we recommend visiting us as soon as you are able.
Fear of the Unknown
When was the last time your insurance copays and premiums decreased in price? Probably never! It is common practice among insurance providers to increase rates and add or drop healthcare providers from the insureds’ preferred (by which we mean less expensive) networks. Rarely are these changes announced in advance. That $20 copay you had this year? There is a good chance that you will not pay the same amount when January rolls around. We feel that it is best to take action now to avoid a potentially nasty surprise.
Don’t Lose Them; Use Them
Insurance benefits are only beneficial if you actually use them. Many well-known dental insurance companies do not allow their plan participants to carry these unused benefits forward into the next year. For example, some will cover the cost of two comprehensive dental checkups per 12 months. Not just any twelve months, though; most limit these visits to the calendar year. If you have visited your family dentist only once this year, you will be unable to take advantage of the unused visit; your two-exam limit restarts.
Your Copay Is Worth It
Whether you are shopping for gifts or planning to travel out of town, it is safe to say that you are looking for ways to save money until your wallet can recover. Unfortunately, sometimes you have to spend money to save money. Your oral health is a perfect example. You might balk at paying another copay to have that small cavity filled, but what happens later? The longer you avoid treatment, the larger the cavity grows. Soon not even a filling is adequate to restore the tooth. Instead, you require a crown. Worst case scenario, the tooth becomes so badly ravaged that it becomes infected—Happy New Year, you need a root canal—or even fall out—here’s to dentures in 2015.
About Your Astoria Dentist
Our Astoria, NY dentist office accepts most major insurance plans. To find out if we accept yours, or to schedule an appointment with Dr. Jeffrey Leibowitz, contact us at (718) 728-8328. We welcome patients living in and around Queens, Astoria, NYC, upstate New York, and New Jersey.
