Dental Benefits for Employees: Group Dental insurance is one of the most important & highly utilized employee benefits programs. Dental insurance promotes oral health. We work with many top carriers to help you deign a benefit program that is right for your group. We can customize product designs that offer a wide range of payment options and large provider coverage networks.
Dental insurance is an insurance coverage to protect against dental costs. It insures against the treatment for dental disease and accidents to the teeth as well as preventive care. Most policies are specific regarding what procedures are covered and exactly how much you pay out of pocket. Most dental plans are managed requiring using a network of dentists for the highest level of coverage.
Types of dental insurance plans
- PPOs: Preferred Provider Organizations
About 80% of today’s dental plans are PPO plans. In essence, if you opt for this type of plan, you can choose from a network of dentists who provide predetermined services for a reduced fee. These services are dictated by the provider of the insurance. If you select an out-of-network dentist, unfortunately, you may have to pay full price for a procedure.
- HMOs: Dental Health Maintenance Organizations/Capitation Plans
This is the second-most popular type of plan, but its popularity pales in comparison to PPO plans, coming in at about 8% of all policies. This is generally considered to be a more affordable plan for patients because there is no deductible, a low monthly premium, and only a predetermined fee for non-preventative dental procedures. Preventative procedures are usually 100% covered. There tends to be shorter waiting periods, so you can usually get oral health care right away with an HMO plan.As it is for PPO plans, a patient must choose an in-network dentist, but HMO plan networks tend to be smaller.
- Indemnity plans:
Indemnity plans comprise about 5% of all plans. They are less popular than the above policies because they tend to be more expensive, but patients don’t need to find an “in-network” dentist. It may also be referred to as a “fee-for-service” or a ‘traditional” dental plan. There is an annual deductible, so you’ll end up paying for services out-of-pocket until the deductible is met, and then the costs will be split between you and your plan provider.
- Discount Dental Plans (DDP):
Discount Dental Plans also make up about 5% of all plans. They are not considered to be “traditional” insurance plans, but are membership programs that help patients save on dental care costs with dentists that agree to participate in the plans. They are often considered to be cost-effective, as patients may only pay up to 50% of the dentist’s original fees. Discount plans usually only cost about $10 per month per person, and benefits can be used immediately.
With so many dental benefit plans available to patients today, it’s important to learn the differences between them. Some plans require your dental practice to be part of a network, others limit maximum charges and many have set fees for specific services. Give us a call today. We are happy to help you select the plan design that is right for your group.