Make Sure To Use Your Dental Benefits Before The End Of The Year!

Most Americans are all about a great deal. We’ve all seen the crazy Black Friday lines that wrap around parking lots and have die-hard shoppers standing in line for hours just to grab a special on the latest gadget. They are determined to spend hours of their time to save some money and claim their prize. Did you know that many of these same people with dental insurance benefits don’t even put them all to use? According to the National Association of Dental Plans, less than 3% of people with PPO dental plan participants reached or exceeded their annual maximum benefits. That means that 97% of people with dental insurance are leaving money behind when their insurance benefits start over each year.

Use It Or Lose It!

Unfortunately, dental benefits don’t roll over each year. Most insurance policies follow a calendar year deadline. They usually renew on January 1st and the benefits are completely reset to be used up in the following year. Therefore, dental benefits that have not been used up by December 31st are expired and once they are expired, they are essentially lost forever! For many people, this means that they forfeit hundreds and perhaps a thousand or more dollars a year!

How Should I Utilize My Dental Benefits?

Perhaps, you are wondering how you can utilize your benefits because you rarely have dental decay. The good news is that you don’t need to have dental problems to be able to utilize your dental benefits. Many dental insurance policies cover preventative procedures as well as restorative. It’s always better for your health and your pocketbook to be taking preventative measures at the dental office.

Preventative measures will likely reduce the restorative and more costly procedures needed in the future. So, if you haven’t had your teeth cleaned twice this year, now would be a great time to get in before the schedule is full and your dental insurance benefits expire. When the dentist is doing your examination, it can also be a great time to ask him or her if they see any fillings that are showing signs of wear. You might also be someone who clenches or grinds their teeth. If that is the case, a bite splint would be a great way to use dental benefits. Being proactive on some of these things can lead to fewer problems down the road. Long term this will help you save money and keep your mouth healthy.

What If I Don’t Have Dental Benefits?

Not everyone has dental insurance or dental benefits, but no worries because end of year also rings true if you have flex savings accounts. A flex savings account is money that has been allocated for medical, dental, and vision services. Most flex savings accounts also clear out each year so any money not used by the end of the year will be lost. All employers’ flex savings accounts tend to work a little differently so it would be good to check in with your employer about your specific account. You can also request from them a list of dental services that the funds can be used for as well as the deadlines for utilizing the money. The great thing about flex savings accounts that we have noticed is that it can sometimes be used for cosmetic dental procedures that insurances often don’t cover such as teeth whitening. Again, this would be something to double-check with your employer. We just hate to see you lose out on the money that has been allocated to you.

As the end of the year is coming closer, it’s important to remember that there are only so many days left in this calendar year. Appointments fill up quickly so make sure that you plan ahead and call soon to get yours reserved! It is also important to keep in mind that some dental procedures take multiple appointments to complete the treatment so this too would be a reason to schedule sooner rather than later. Schedule an appointment with us online, or please give us a call!