No Dental Insurance

[ABLE2KnowUser2]

At 75 years old I had half my teeth left. Extraction costs ranged from $100 to $200 from 2000-2022, so I didn't bother with insurance the last couple of years.
Two weeks ago the dentist referred me to an oral surgeon to remove the lower right located right next to an impacted wisdom tooth. Guess what it cost me.

 

[LostDollar]

$782.99

 

[goillini52]

$225.77

 

[ABLE2KnowUser2]

less than 782 by about 60 and more than 228 by about 500. And, in my opinion it wasn't even the right tooth. The oral surgeon was right, but I only asked the dentist to please stop the pain. So during the two weeks after the extraction, the exact same pain continued. I returned. She asked me if I wanted a filling for the tooth causing the pain saying it would probably last a couple more years. I said yes. She filled it for $394. It continued to be in pain for 7 more days. I called and she referred me to the same oral surgeon. He pulled it for about $460 (I guess including taxes and whatever cause they told me three hundred and something). Finally, the pain is gone. But I really wonder - wonder about a lot of things. One thing for example, I wonder if they are mad at me because I no longer have insurance! Are they able to get more money if you have insurance? One other thing I wonder about is whether I made them mad because I asked if I could pay half the price for cleanings because I only have half my teeth. I wonder about a lot more things - even like maybe at 75 years old and retired, is it that they consider me a drag on society.

 

[ABLE2KnowUser2]

So now I have bought Dental Insurance again. But I wonder about that to because it's costing me $63/month. But my wife only pays $22/month through her medicare. Sorry, I don't understand a lot of this stuff. I have never really understood money.

 

[Chazm]

They definitely rather you pay cash.

Medicare doesn’t cover dental, so she probably has it with her Medicare Advantage plan. Or, she bought a stand alone plan that probably covers less than your $63 plan.