With the high cost of everything, more and more people are searching for an individual dental plan. Dentistry is not cheap and insurance or dental plans are a great way to offset the cost. There are a few things you should consider however when looking for an individual dental plan.

Ask Employer

By far the best individual dental plan will come from an employer. If you are employed full time and have not done so, ask your employer if there is any coverage available and when you will be eligible to receive it. These plans are best because insurance companies offer better deals to organizations that offer them a large number of potential clients in one place. Should your employer not offer dental benefits you could enquire why and perhaps be the catalyst for its addition.

Your Dentist

If you currently have a dentist, you should ask to speak with the financial manager about your individual dental plan needs. They will know your particular situation better than anyone else will and can possibly suggest a decent plan for you, or at least give you information on where to begin the search.

Internet

Online quotes are a great way to get a feel for individual dental plan costs and options. Within one site, you can find many different dental plan options including insurance, PPO and HMO’s. This gives you the opportunity to compare the plans side by side and determine which plan is best for you.

Insurance

Dental insurance is probably the most popular choice with most people. Insurance will offer you the opportunity to use any dentist you choose and pay a small percentage of the bill at the time of service. However, you should be careful with these plans, as often there are limits on service, annual expenditures and even which procedures are covered. Most individual dental plans from an insurance company will not cover cosmetic procedures at all. They will on occasion pay for things you may need done prior to cosmetics such as root canals or teeth repositioning since these are not just cosmetic in nature.

Dental Plans

An individual dental plan will vary from one provider to the next. These plans generally require you to use an in network dentist to get the best savings. Unlike insurance there is not usually a limit on procedures, however the savings are nowhere near the 80% you get from dental insurance.