I went to the dentist today and the problem was what I thought it would be, a broken chunk of tooth around an old filling. The dentist also said the fillings in front of the broken tooth and in back of the broken tooth were failing so for $1100 I got two (30+ years old) fillings replaced and a crown for the broken tooth. I think it was a very good price since the going rate for these services would be several hundred dollars more so I told him to go ahead and do the work. A couple hours later I walked out with a numb jaw, two new fillings, and a temporary crown until the final crown comes in.
Flying to Connecticut and getting the work done would have cost the same if not more (we always take the family--lots of family members--out to eat several times while we are there plus pay for materials and lab fees for the dental work) in addition to the cost and hassle of travel so overall I am happy with the work done today, the cost, and most importantly that we had the money in savings to cover this.
It would be really nice if we had socialized health care that covered all people entirely--health and medical care, prescriptions, mental health, dental health, hearing and vision. As it is, people can have teeth rotting out of their head and if they don't have the money to pay for dental services they are left to suffer. I've know some people who have went to the local university dental school for cheaper services, people who have gone to Mexico and Asia for medical and dental "tourism", and quite a while back I knew a guy who yanked his own rotting tooth out with pliers (definitely not recommended!). While I am grateful for advanced dental care (in many poor countries the only option is to yank the problem tooth out leaving many people in their 20s with dentures), the cost can be astronomical when people don't make much money, can barely pay their regular bills, and don't have savings to fall back on. Hopefully our country will move towards a more equitable way to provide care to everyone who needs it!
We have dental insurance, but it doesn't cover or pay for everything. Our out of pocket costs for work like that are still a lot. $1100 seems pretty good for all the work you had done. I'm really hoping our country figures out a way to get everyone health care at a reasonable cost. Medicare for all would be great as it seems that the system is already set up for it. If I was not tied to my job simply for the insurance, I would definitely be doing something else, or working as a sub. Healthcare for all that's not linked to a job would give everyone more freedom to leave bad jobs which would force companies to treat their workers better. JMO, of course. I have to work 5 more years before I can get Medicare. Some days I don't think I'll make it. :-/
ReplyDeleteCanada's health system is not all it's cracked up to be. No dental, vision, prescriptions included. While things like cataract surgery are covered my Mom's been waiting 3 years!
ReplyDeleteWow that's a long wait! In the US people often point to Canada or Europe-style socialized healthcare and while it may not be great, I think it is better than what most people get in the US.
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