Insurance & Financial Policies
Uninsured Patients
For patients who don’t have dental insurance, or whose insurance benefit maximum has been met for the contract year, full payment is due at time of service, including any past-due balance. We accept cash and checks, as well as Visa, Mastercard, Discover, and American Express. There is also an option to pay online.
Insured Patients
We accept all major PPO dental insurance (Delta, MetLife, Aetna, Blue Cross/Blue Shield, etc.), but no HMOs. We are out-of-network providers, and so submit claims at our current office fees. We recommend that you review your dental insurance policy for clarification prior to your first visit. As of January 1, 2023, we are no longer Delta Premier Providers.
For patients with active dental insurance, we will submit your claim for services rendered, then bill you for any remaining balance not covered by your insurance policy, unless you have Delta, in which case Delta will send payment directly to you, not to us. In order for us to bill insurance properly, please provide us with your complete and accurate insurance information and keep us up to date regarding any changes to your policy. Note: Beginning July 1, 2023, all insurance providers, not just Delta, will send payments directly to the patient instead of to us.
Please note: Any remaining balance due after an insurance claim has been settled is the patient’s responsibility, whether your insurance provider pays or not. Some or even all of the services provided may be non-covered and/or not considered reasonable and necessary according to your provider. Your insurance policy is a contract between you and your insurance provider, and reimbursement levels are dependent upon the premiums you pay, the benefits your company negotiates, and frequency limitations. We are not a party to that contract.
If your insurance provider has not paid on a submitted claim within 60 days, you may be asked to pay the total amount of your balance, in which case it will become your responsibility to collect any unpaid benefit from your insurance provider. Any amount your provider pays to our office that you have already paid will be refunded to you or, if you wish, credited to your account to be applied to future services.
Any insurance benefit figure provided by our office is an estimate only, not a guarantee of payment. We recommend that you contact your dental insurance provider with any questions regarding your coverage, and request a pre-treatment estimate of coverage before embarking on any potentially costly treatment.
Usual and Customary Rates
We charge what is usual and customary for prosthodontic practices in our area. You are responsible for payment regardless of what an insurance company may define as “usual and customary fees.”
Missed Appointments
Because office time and materials are reserved for you, a fee may be applied for a missed appointment not canceled at least 24 hours in advance. The first such fee will be $75; subsequent fees will be charged at our current hygiene rate. Please help us serve our patients efficiently by arriving on time for your scheduled appointment and giving us as much advance notice as possible of a conflict in your schedule. (For more information, please see Missed Appointments.)
Delinquent Accounts
We appreciate payment within 30 days of billing statement receipt. Payments received later than 30 days are subject to a monthly 1.5% finance charge ($3.00 minimum). Accounts over 90 days past-due are subject to submission to a collection service, which may adversely affect your credit rating. We reserve this as a final measure after all other attempts at collection have been exhausted.
Our practice is committed to providing the best possible dental and oral health care and making your visit with us as enjoyable as possible. Feel free to discuss with us any questions or concerns you have regarding the above.