Dental Implants and Insurance: Which Plans Cover it?

If you’re thinking about getting a surgery for dental implants, you need to make absolutely sure that your insurance policy will cover the cost of the surgery, otherwise you will have to pay for the full amount yourself, and these surgeries aren’t cheap. Most dental insurance plans, nearly all in fact, don’t cover elective surgeries for procedures like implants. If you’ve never had occasion to find out before, call your insurance provider and just ask them. They will be happy to help you out. If you think you can undergo an implant surgery without the aid of insurance to cover the price, you are either extremely wealthy or you’re in for a surprise. That’s why it’s always best to get fully covered with dental implant insurance.

What is Dental Implant Insurance?

This is a policy that will fully cover any cost incurred by a dental implant surgery. Most dental plans won’t cover implant surgery, although it is often available as an additional policy for an inflated premium. There are also other things that you should be thinking about before signing off on the surgical procedure.

So what are dental implants? If, for whatever reason, you lose one of your natural teeth, there is very little chance that that tooth can be reattached. In this situation, you could either live with a gaping hole in your smile, or you could get a tooth implant. It’s a ceramic implant that looks exactly like a real tooth. Some people who don’t like their natural teeth even elect to have them all torn out and replaced with dental implants, every single one. The replacements are surgically rooted into the gums, exactly the way a real tooth would sit. Most people who receive this type of surgery can’t even tell the difference between the implants and the real thing. When compared to bridgework or dentures, implants are much more secure and they look and feel completely real. The only difference is the high cost involved, and that is where dental insurance comes in.

One of the big problems with some dental insurance policies is not that they don’t cover implant surgery, but more that you must be on the insurance plan for a specific amount of time beforehand. Sometimes, this can be as much as five years! If you are in need of urgent dental implants, you don’t want to sit around waiting for years before you are able to get the surgery, you want it immediately.

Another problem with some policies is that they will cover the treatment for a lost tooth, but it must be the cheapest option. This will rarely if ever cover implant surgery, as it is one of the most expensive dental procedures out there. This is why you always need to read the policy carefully before going ahead with the surgery, because otherwise you might wake up with a beautiful smile as well as a hefty dental bill.