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Is it my imagination, or is the newer wave of dentists making up stuff for us to "require" in order to have a healthy mouth? My trusted dentist moved out of town and I have been searching for a new one. I've tried out a few for a cleaning, but haven't found someone that I "click" with in order to go back to. Here's some reasons why:
Not everyone can possibly need a night guard. My teeth are slightly worn down? Well yeah.....I've been using them for 40+ years....it is bound to happen! My canines were never a sharp point.....you should have asked before telling me that they are no longer sharp because of griding.
No, I don't have TMJ. It did not magically develop this last year. If you are putting more pressure on one side of my jaw when you tell me to open and close, it is logically going to push my jawbone slightly to one side.
And don't get me started about this whole "losing enamel" craze. One commercial on tv with a fluorescent light behind teeth to show how transparent they are, and suddenly every dentist has a new hot button to overcharge for.
That gap on the crown? Yeah, I can see your point. But why is it URGENT according to you, and has to be replaced RIGHT NOW, when I am not experiencing any symptoms and I look back at xrays from 3 years ago and it was there then too. No one else said anything. So, how about we make a PLAN for it in the next few months instead of you reaching that little suction thing into my wallet TODAY??
Deep cleanings? Bull. Maybe for someone who hasn't been to a dentist in 10 years but otherwise....no.
and OMG...for heaven's sake, don't ask WHY to any of the above....or you will be labeled as "difficult" or someting similar. (You can see it in their eyes.)
So....I'm still on the hunt here in my home town. I'm "trying" to stay in-network for a change, so that is narrowing my potentials somewhat. My experiences above do seem to be with the younger/newer graduates...but of course that is my experience and not necessarily fact.
There are a ton of referral request threads for my area and everywhere else, so I am not asking for that.....just ranting. I guess I will have about 6 months to check out my next candidate.....
Last edited by 2goldens; 03-02-2010 at 04:11 AM..
Reason: Moved from Other Topics
Plus a lot of people don't have dental insurance, so they can pretty much charge what they want. There's no 'usual customary reasonable' amount, like with health insurance. If they charge $350, and insurance says well, we'll give you fifty, they say OK. If you don't have insurance you can't really dicker with them.
Plus a lot of people don't have dental insurance, so they can pretty much charge what they want. There's no 'usual customary reasonable' amount, like with health insurance. If they charge $350, and insurance says well, we'll give you fifty, they say OK. If you don't have insurance you can't really dicker with them.
Regular doctors do the same thing, and that's what annoys the **** out of me about the whole insurance game. All we need to do to *fix* healthcare is to get rid of the games by demanding that all healthcare providers give the same price to everybody they see. I don't want the government to set the prices, but I do want them to stop allowing hospitals/doctors/dentists/etc. to stop gouging cash patients.
I'm still boiling over one procedure I had last year that would have cost 20 times as much if I hadn't had insurance! I am grateful that I had that insurance, but there's absolutely no reason for them to charge people without insurance $100 for something that they'd only charge me $5 for.
Plus a lot of people don't have dental insurance, so they can pretty much charge what they want. There's no 'usual customary reasonable' amount, like with health insurance. If they charge $350, and insurance says well, we'll give you fifty, they say OK. If you don't have insurance you can't really dicker with them.
There might be a "usual" amount.....but it is definitely not "reasonable".
Regular doctors do the same thing, and that's what annoys the **** out of me about the whole insurance game. All we need to do to *fix* healthcare is to get rid of the games by demanding that all healthcare providers give the same price to everybody they see. I don't want the government to set the prices, but I do want them to stop allowing hospitals/doctors/dentists/etc. to stop gouging cash patients.
I'm still boiling over one procedure I had last year that would have cost 20 times as much if I hadn't had insurance! I am grateful that I had that insurance, but there's absolutely no reason for them to charge people without insurance $100 for something that they'd only charge me $5 for.
Agree! When I've been a cash patient more than once I got the feeling the doctor and staff believed they were doing me a favor.
Why? Because they couldn't rook an insurance carrier.
As a cash patient they don't have to file a claim, get rejected on claim, refile, follow up, argue with the insurance company, etc. I'm saving them money. Their price should be lower as a result.
So I'd like to say to them: Lose the 'tude! Their greed draws no sympathy from me.
I hear ya. Trying to get medical help is difficult and pricey enough, but for some reason dental doesn't seem to be as important. Uh...lets see, if I can't afford to see a dentist and I lose my teeth how am I suppose to eat? Throw a straw for the rest of my life? Don't even get me started on infections from tooth decay that couldn't be treated because the cost is just ridiculous.
I hear ya. Trying to get medical help is difficult and pricey enough, but for some reason dental doesn't seem to be as important. Uh...lets see, if I can't afford to see a dentist and I lose my teeth how am I suppose to eat? Throw a straw for the rest of my life? Don't even get me started on infections from tooth decay that couldn't be treated because the cost is just ridiculous.
Yup it is, but for me, it wasn't a bad thing because it forced me to learn how to take care of my own teeth.
Basically, as long as you brush (with a natural toothpaste), floss, and use a jet stream of water to blast food particles from in between your teeth and gums you should be just fine.
I pay cash for dental stuff. I never have this happen. The dentist is trying to give you preventative treatment to avoid more costly repair in the future. It sounds like your old dentist's style was not like this.
You will not get the deep cleaning with a waterpic and brushing that you do at the dentist.
What can happen with that crown issue is that its the perfect set up for infection. My mother let one go and absess set in and then she had an even more costly fix plus rounds of medication.
If your crown is holding together a cracked tooth..May god help you if that falls off.
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