Urgent - Dental without insurance. (buy, deductible, prices)

[gcretro]

My mom who's visiting us from abroad, has some tooth pain and swelling of the cheek on one side. Her visitor insurance won't cover dental...

Any thoughts on which dentist I need to visit in the RDU area?

thx

[pfish923]

I would call around and tell them you have cash. Every dentist is going to be different in price based on the service and sometimes even the form of payment.

[librarySue]

Groupon???

[gal83]

There are few dentist network cards available if you search online. These cards give you discount if you use them with select dentists. Something like this:
DentalPlans.com Plan Search Results

You can buy them before the visit. The idea of calling dentists and ask for cash prices is also good.

[3catmom]

Cash-- if it is just an extraction I bet it will be less than $300. Have you called a dentist?

[poppydog]

The pain and facial swelling sounds like an abscess and she will most likely need antibiotics to get that under control before they go for an extraction or root canal either one, so as not to spread the infection. The dentist would probably want to examine and x-ray and then give abx for a couple of weeks. Depending on how long she's staying she might be able to get whatever needs to happen next done at her own dentist. I had a bad tooth that I needed to have a root canal on flare up right before a trip to DC that couldn't be postponed. I took abx and that took care of the abscess which took care of the swelling which was causing the pain. The pain was much better in a day or two. Went ahead and enjoyed the trip and just kept taking the penicillin and had the root canal a couple of weeks later.

[NYC2RDU]

Try contacting Dr. Brian Glover on Lynn Road. I originally found him in 2009 because I was a) not on insurance and b) needed someone to see me on a Saturday. I really don't know about his cash price for things only that he's the only reason we're able to afford going to the dentist. Plus he's a super, super nice guy.

[gcretro]

Thx. I was able to get some antibiotic with a pcp visit for the swelling. She doesn't have fever yet thankfully.

I called 2 dentists. For starters, they said anywhere from $80 to 120 bucks to get an oral exam and an x-ray. I suppose that's reasonable rate...

She had a root canal done 5 months ago in India, we suspect something is acting up on that tooth. She travels back in exactly a month... gotto see what the dentist has to say after an evaluation.

[poppydog]

Hope she feels better soon.

[Suncc49]

Dental insurance is a scam anyways unless you work for a huge corporation.... generally it is $39.00 with a $1,000 deductible, 2 cleanings a year, and no x rays etc covered.

It works out better to just save your $39.00 a month.