#braces #adultbraces #tucsonorthodontist

Understanding Your Orthodontic Insurance
Orthodontic insurance is very different from medical insurance! Here at Linaker Orthodontics have gathered up some common questions about navigating orthodontic insurance. If you have any questions that were not discussed in this blog, please feel free to call us at 520-531-1496 any time and our Financial Coordinator will be glad to assist!

Do You Accept My Insurance?
Linaker Orthodontics accepts ALL insurances! We can verify your insurance prior to the consultation to ensure we are maximizing benefits.

Do I Have to Have Insurance to Schedule a Consultation?
Nope! Patients are not required to have insurance in order to be seen. We offer 100% complimentary consultations. There are no charges for this visit and even the x-rays are free!

What is a DPO or HMO insurance?
In some rare cases, a workplace may be contracted out with specific orthodontists within a certain radius. In this case, even though we accept payments from the main insurance company, the “group” may not be willing to pay benefits. If you have an insurance policy like this, we encourage you to contact your insurance company for more information on specific coverage. You are always welcome to come by our office for a complimentary consultation, regardless of the type of insurance!

What Are My Benefits?
Every insurance company offers different benefits. Medical, dental, and orthodontic insurance are all considered different benefits. In most cases, orthodontic insurance has a “one-time use” benefit, called a lifetime maximum. Your insurance company may pay up to this amount towards braces.

Should I Purchase a Second Insurance Plan for Braces?
This is a tough question! There are hundreds of policies with many exclusions. Policies and coverage may change on a daily basis. We recommend that you first contact the HR department at work, or a representative for the insurance company to get a layout of their plans. Please be aware that secondary insurance may sometimes have fine print that they will not pay if there is a primary insurance. It is important when contacting an HR representative or an insurance company representative that this question is specifically addressed so you can rest assured the secondary insurance will provide coverage.

What is a Lifetime Maximum?
Unlike other dental benefits, most orthodontic benefits do not renew each year. Insurance companies call this a lifetime maximum. This means the orthodontic benefit can only be used once per duration of having that insurance.

Does My Insurance Company Pay for Each Appointment?
It is important to remember that orthodontic benefits are typically paid over the course of treatment in monthly, quarterly, or even yearly installments. This is why it is very important to keep your coverage throughout the course of treatment in order to receive the full benefit.

How Do I Check My Eligibility?
Some employers offer orthodontic coverage, but they have rules about who may or may not receive those benefits. Some policies require you to work a minimum number of hours per week, or there may be a waiting period for new employees. Our insurance specialists will verify your orthodontic benefits before your free consultation to let you know if you are eligible for orthodontic benefits!

Work in Progress
If you get a new insurance company while in treatment, or if you transfer to our office from another location to continue treatment, your new insurance company will consider the braces as a “work in progress”. Most insurance companies will prorate your benefit based on what the prior coverage paid and/or the remaining treatment time. Not all plans allow for work in progress. Every insurance company has their own little formula that they use to determine how much they will pay for a work in progress claim. We can help you navigate that tricky slope!

Primary vs. Secondary Insurance
When a patient is enrolled in two active insurances, this is called “dual coverage.” Our office will do our best to help determine how much each policy will pay towards braces. Some insurances have special rules or exclusions on the policy that may make it impossible to collect the maximum amount on both insurances.
The plans determine which insurance is primary and which is secondary; we as providers and you as the patients are not able to determine or choose which is primary. Sometimes they use a “birthday rule.” This means the parent whose birthday comes first in the calendar year may be considered to be your child’s primary coverage. Since each insurance has their own set of rules, it is important to have a knowledgeable insurance specialist to help navigate the systems!

Additional Procedures
If extractions or other dental work is needed throughout orthodontic treatment, your policy may charge your “dental benefits” or your “orthodontic benefits”. These are typically separate benefits and each insurance company has their own rules about which one will apply.

Thinking about getting braces? Experts say it's never too late. These days, adults make up nearly half of orthodontic patients hoping to finally get the perfect smile they've always dreamed about.

Braces have evolved considerably in the last 15 years. Breathe easy, the days of being a true "metal mouth" are over and more lightweight and cosmetically friendly options are out there.

"The [brackets] are smaller and we don't use all the bands or appliances that wrap all the way around [the tooth] like we used to. Now, we use bonded brackets that are a lot smaller or the clear braces that are a lot more cosmetic as far as their appearance," Michael Sebastian, DDS, an orthodontist in Atlanta, tells WebMD. Sebastian says this and less pain and time associated with wearing braces have more adults making the plunge. Sebastian says adults can expect to wear braces an average of 12 to 20 months.

Bracing for Braces

But why now? Maybe the reason is as an adult you can afford braces when your parents couldn't or you are simply more conscious of the cosmetic and health benefits of having straight teeth.

Most people want a great smile, and adults know that it can make a great difference not only in their personal but also their professional lives. Many say the payoff is worth the temporary inconvenience and expense of braces.

"Patients that I see now, I think there's an initial concern, but if they really and truly want the braces, they're not that concerned once they make the decision. Once they've made up their mind to get them, they fall right in because they either know someone that had them before or they've seen their kids go through it and they want the same thing for themselves," says Duane Anglin, DDS, a dentist outside of Baltimore who decided to get braces during dental school. He says he has no regrets.

"From a professional standpoint, I think I'm a lot more comfortable walking in the room and saying hello, good morning, and meeting a new patient for the first time, because in the back of my mind it was always, 'How am I going to be a dentist and have teeth that are not straight?'" he says.

Sebastian says age shouldn't be a worry. He says as people live longer, he sees more adults of all ages interested in preserving their teeth. Senior citizens are even becoming more common in his practice.

The Healthy Smile

Dental professionals say there are also health reasons for having a correct bite.

"With teeth that are in cross bite, teeth that are misaligned, there is an increased chance of plaque buildup, food buildup in between your teeth, which is a trickle-down effect because the more food buildup, the more plaque; therefore, the more concern for periodontal disease and gum disease," Anglin tells WebMD. Improper bite also means you can't chew food properly, which can lead to gastrointestinal problems, he says.

So how do you get that Hollywood smile? There are more options than ever. With traditional braces, you can select metal or clear/ceramic braces, but there are pros and cons.

"Traditional metal braces -- if the patient has a significant bite problem or severely crooked teeth -- are slightly more effective at moving teeth than clear braces. If you came to me and said, 'I want my teeth as straight as fast as possible,' and you had really crooked teeth, then I'd say put metal braces on," Sebastian says.

He says clear braces work fine in most cases but there are some downfalls. The adhesive that holds the bracket in place can stain from dark drinks and smoking, and they cost more than metal braces.

Often, adults hoping to avoid "metal mouth" go the clear route.

"I'm not embarrassed about having [braces] at my age because you see a lot of people now, young adults, even older adults wearing braces," says Ivy Horn, a lawyer in Atlanta who is considering clear/ceramic braces after already wearing metal braces as a teen. "In my field I do a lot of speaking when I am in court a lot. I just think it would look better if I had the clear braces rather than the metal braces so people aren't focusing so much on what's in my mouth but the words that are coming out of my mouth."

Statistics from the October Journal of Clinical Orthodontics show that the average cost of an adult set of braces in the U.S. is $4,800.

Invisalign vs. Braces

Another option for the vain at heart is Invisalign. Patients wear a series of clear, removable orthodontic aligners that are adjusted as the teeth shift into place without metal or wires. A series of custom-made aligners are worn each for a period of two weeks. Each aligner moves the teeth progressively into place. Average total treatment time: a few months to 1 1/2 years. While orthodontists say Invisalign can be a good alternative to traditional braces, there are limitations.

"Invisalign does not do a great job on vertical problems, where the teeth are at different heights, teeth are lower or higher than others. It doesn't not do a good job on teeth that are severely rotated, and it does not do a good job at correcting bite issues," says Sebastian, who also says Invisalign would also not be the best option for fixing severely overcrowded teeth.

Sebastian says Invisalign can cost an average of $500 more than a one-year treatment with traditional braces.

A critical component of braces are the end game -- wearing the retainer. "It used to be, your teeth are straight, you wear retainers for a year, it will never change. Well, we know that's just not fact. Now we have to tell patients to plan on retention for years; lifetime retention is the word that they use now," says Sebastian, who has a number of patients who are repeat orthodontic clients.

Whatever your motivation to straighten your teeth, Dorfman -- who has had a complete smile makeover himself -- says it can change your life.

"I would say that if you're not happy with your smile, 90% of the time, changing it is a lot easier than you ever thought and you should find a good cosmetic dentist in your area and go and have a consultation and talk about it. Life is too short not to be able to walk into a room and just have a beautiful, healthy, happy smile that makes you feel good about yourself."

Adapted from WebMD By Cherie Berkley
http://www.webmd.com/oral-health/features/straight-talk-about-braces-for-adults

More self-esteem, a better career and improved relationships may be on the tip of your tongue. Well, close to it. If your teeth are not as nice as you’d like, having them treated by an orthodontist could make a big difference in your life—and if you didn’t have them straightened when you were young, you may be glad to know it’s not too late.
Adult orthodontic treatment contributes to significant improvements in both professional and personal lives, say respondents to a study conducted among adults who had the treatment.
Survey Findings
Seventy-five percent of adults surveyed reported improvements in career or personal relationships, which they attributed to their improved post-orthodontic treatment smile. Citing newfound self-confidence, 92 percent of survey respondents say they would recommend orthodontic treatment to other adults.
Seventy-one percent of respondents had such pretreatment concerns as “What will others think?” “How will I look?” “Am I too old?,” but an overwhelming majority said the concerns were gone once treatment actually began.
Respondents reported positive outcomes:
• “I was much more confident and self-assured once I could smile openly. Life is very stressful [on a subconscious level] when you’re always aware that you cannot open your mouth to smile without fear of judgment.”
• “With an attractive smile, you can face your career and personal relationships with confidence.”
• “A more brilliant smile and the straightest teeth gave me confidence to do anything.”
The Doctor’s Opinion
Says Gayle Glenn, D.D.S., M.S.D., president of the American Association of Orthodontists (AAO): “Adults are seeking treatment in record numbers and we encourage anyone, at any age, to consult an orthodontist to learn if he or she could benefit from treatment. It’s never too late to move healthy teeth.”
After dental school, orthodontists receive an additional two to three years of specialized education at an accredited orthodontic residency program. Only those who have successfully completed this formal education may call themselves “orthodontists,” and only orthodontists are eligible for AAO membership.
Based on their education and experience, orthodontists can devise effective treatment plans that employ the full range of treatment types, from high-tech to tried-and-true, based on the needs of each individual patient.

By NAPS,
North American Precis Syndicate

Dr Linaker is an AAO Member