Dental Work Qs

[isu22andy]

Been going religiously to the ol hometown doc for years every 6 months . Doc X is a one man shop , hasnt put any money in the place other than equipment for years. No TVs in the place, notta. Good dentist really I had no complaints other than sometimes a tooth be a little more sensitive than I thought when drillling and healing and I had a cavity I thought should be repaired but he said it was fine... Hes getting near retirement age so I decided what the hell time to make the jump . Decided to go to Doc ABCs new joint that has multiple tvs state of the art equipment and multiple doctors and hygenist. Im thinking finally they are gonna fix this tooth been bothering me I thought ol Doc X should of fixed a year ago. Did my cleaning and ill be go to hell they had alot of gee wiz bang equipment . ... Hit me with an estimate bill for 4 CROWNS to fix... 6400 dollars. Said had to fix some of old Doc Xs work and wasnt enough tooth left after redoing the fillings and fixing the new decay. I says what the heck, Doc X never said I had any of this 6 months ago. They said he was too old school and he was to fixed on the olden days and didnt have the technology. Seems a little like a sales pitch more than a repair shop but whats the consensous ? Crowns for some cavities my old doc couldnt see 6 months ago seems crazy. Talked to a few other people and they said this has also happened to them...

TLDR : Do I get the crowns or only fix the tooth bothering me ?

 

[dosry5]

You get a 2nd and 3rd opinion. Dental billing fraud is rampant and not easy to catch

 

[ISUAlum2002]

Yeah, 2nd and 3rd opinion time. I just had two root canals and two crowns done up for about $3,500. The crowns themselves were about $1,200 each.

 

[ImJustKCClone]

My dentist retired, and a "corporation" dental team (similar to Aspen Dental) took over his office and clientele. My first visit there after the changeover, I found out that my hygienist had left and they assigned me a new one, who informed me I was due for x-rays. I don't really pay attention to that, they usually do a panel once a year. After the 10th xray I started wondering what the heck was going on as I was used to around 4-6. When I asked her, she said the dentists required a "complete mapping panel" for all new patients. She took somewhere around 35 xrays. Then the cleaning...which didn't happen. She told me she would need to use novocaine and do a deep cleaning. Yeah...had that done once by an oral surgeon. No way I was having it done again, and certainly not by a hygienist.
My dentist always billed me after billing my insurance and receiving their payment. My payment record was excellent, so it wasn't like they were carrying charges for me forever. Nope, this new group wanted payment up front, and then they would give me the paperwork to file my own claim. Then they started showing me the prices, which were 1.5 to 2.0 times what my former dentist charged. At that point I basically said thanks, but no thanks, and went over to the dentist my husband had been seeing (another one or two guy local practice). MUCH better. Especially since we now pay out-of-pocket for all dental work as retirees. Premiums for dental insurance didn't make up for how little they cover. We come out ahead by just paying it straight to the dentist.

TL;DR
Find a different dentist - the one you saw is basically in it to make $$$ off you.

 

[isu22andy]

Unfortunately there isnt very many options in a small town . Interesting responses so far.

 

[dosry5]

Unfortunately there isnt very many options in a small town . Interesting responses so far.

For that kinda money you can afford to travel to find an honest dentist

 

[SpokaneCY]

Been going religiously to the ol hometown doc for years every 6 months . Doc X is a one man shop , hasnt put any money in the place other than equipment for years. No TVs in the place, notta. Good dentist really I had no complaints other than sometimes a tooth be a little more sensitive than I thought when drillling and healing and I had a cavity I thought should be repaired but he said it was fine... Hes getting near retirement age so I decided what the hell time to make the jump . Decided to go to Doc ABCs new joint that has multiple tvs state of the art equipment and multiple doctors and hygenist. Im thinking finally they are gonna fix this tooth been bothering me I thought ol Doc X should of fixed a year ago. Did my cleaning and ill be go to hell they had alot of gee wiz bang equipment . ... Hit me with an estimate bill for 4 CROWNS to fix... 6400 dollars. Said had to fix some of old Doc Xs work and wasnt enough tooth left after redoing the fillings and fixing the new decay. I says what the heck, Doc X never said I had any of this 6 months ago. They said he was too old school and he was to fixed on the olden days and didnt have the technology. Seems a little like a sales pitch more than a repair shop but whats the consensous ? Crowns for some cavities my old doc couldnt see 6 months ago seems crazy. Talked to a few other people and they said this has also happened to them...

TLDR : Do I get the crowns or only fix the tooth bothering me ?

Dunno - but years ago I tried changing dentists to a whiz bang tech-savvy guy. He said I needed to replace all my fillings and do some other stuff or else I could get TMJ. Said $15,000 now and if I waited I'd be facing a $30,000 fix.

I walked away rather than funding this new guy's vacation home and mercedes... And my teeth are beautiful 20 years later and counting...

 

[dosry5]

I walked away rather than funding this new guy's vacation home and mercedes... And my teeth are beautiful 20 years later and counting...

They’re real...and they’re spectacular

 

[Cyclones_R_GR8]

I had a new dentist tell me he needed to replace all my fillings. I said everything was just fine.
He told me that I could get the new bondo type fillings so it looked like all tooth and no fillings.
I told him we would deal with it when it needed to be dealt with.
I did have to get a crown because one tooth eventually cracked.

 

[jdcyclone19]

Been going religiously to the ol hometown doc for years every 6 months . Doc X is a one man shop , hasnt put any money in the place other than equipment for years. No TVs in the place, notta. Good dentist really I had no complaints other than sometimes a tooth be a little more sensitive than I thought when drillling and healing and I had a cavity I thought should be repaired but he said it was fine... Hes getting near retirement age so I decided what the hell time to make the jump . Decided to go to Doc ABCs new joint that has multiple tvs state of the art equipment and multiple doctors and hygenist. Im thinking finally they are gonna fix this tooth been bothering me I thought ol Doc X should of fixed a year ago. Did my cleaning and ill be go to hell they had alot of gee wiz bang equipment . ... Hit me with an estimate bill for 4 CROWNS to fix... 6400 dollars. Said had to fix some of old Doc Xs work and wasnt enough tooth left after redoing the fillings and fixing the new decay. I says what the heck, Doc X never said I had any of this 6 months ago. They said he was too old school and he was to fixed on the olden days and didnt have the technology. Seems a little like a sales pitch more than a repair shop but whats the consensous ? Crowns for some cavities my old doc couldnt see 6 months ago seems crazy. Talked to a few other people and they said this has also happened to them...

TLDR : Do I get the crowns or only fix the tooth bothering me ?

For that price, book a nice 7-10 day vacation to Mexico and get some dental work while you’re there, then go home and still save $2k.

 

[cy4life94]

Strangely enough I just saw a new dentist for the first time this week. I hadn’t been to the dentist since I was I college, probably 5 years or so, so I thought they would tell me I needed to have a bunch of stuff done. Turns out, I must’ve been taking good care of my teeth for all these years because after the cleaning, they just let me go. I was sort of shocked. And it was one of the nicer places with all the tech too, even had massage chairs!

 

[CycloneDaddy]

Strangely enough I just saw a new dentist for the first time this week. I hadn’t been to the dentist since I was I college, probably 5 years or so, so I thought they would tell me I needed to have a bunch of stuff done. Turns out, I must’ve been taking good care of my teeth for all these years because after the cleaning, they just let me go. I was sort of shocked. And it was one of the nicer places with all the tech too, even had massage chairs!

Dang a massage chair, all I get is a hot towel for my neck and warm wax bath for my hands.

 

[Rogue52]

Run for the hills and get a second opinion.

 

[besserheimerphat]

For that price, book a nice 7-10 day vacation to Mexico and get some dental work while you’re there, then go home and still save $2k.

My wife's tattoo artist (so self employed with no dental insurance) takes a 10 day vacation to Thailand when she needs dental work done. Gets a kick ass vacation, top notch dental work, and saves money compared to getting it done locally.

 

[centralcy]

Find a dentist office you like, and dentist you trust. None of us here went to dental school (I don’t think). The great thing is that you have a choice and the option to get other opinions.

Sure, dentists here in the USA might cost more than Mexico or Thailand, but they also comply with the FDA, OSHA, and CDC guidelines to provide top quality care. Following the guidelines and regulations does cost money.

Get more opinions, and then go with the dentist you trust the most. They did go to school for this, so you should be able to find someone with the right expertise and able to trust with your heath.

 

[dosry5]

My wife's tattoo artist (so self employed with no dental insurance) takes a 10 day vacation to Thailand when she needs dental work done. Gets a kick ass vacation, top notch dental work, and saves money compared to getting it done locally.

wasn’t this the basis for one of the Hangover movies?

 

[CycloneSarah]

I just scheduled a dentist appointment in our new area and I haven't been in about a year. This thread is now making me dread it even more than normal.

 

[JP4CY]

My wife's tattoo artist (so self employed with no dental insurance) takes a 10 day vacation to Thailand when she needs dental work done. Gets a kick ass vacation, top notch dental work, and saves money compared to getting it done locally.

I'm sitting here wondering how painful it would be to have a flight back with the cabin pressure doing something to a new filling. (Yes, I know the cabins are pressurized)

 

[VeloClone]

For that kinda money you can afford to travel to find an honest dentist

This exactly. That dentist knows that they are one of very few options in the area and is betting that people won't go through the hassle of driving half an hour to save thousands of dollars.

 

[VeloClone]

My brother in law is a dentist. He graduated with honors from dental school but was one of the very few that did who went into general practice rather than one of the more lucrative specialties with more regular hours. He is constantly keeping himself abreast of the latest treatments and procedures and invests heavily in keeping his equipment up to date. But he recognizes that there is plenty of honest work and you are better off building trust with your patients rather than pissing some of them off and having people bad mouth you just so you can make a few extra bucks.