The average annual maximum benefit for dental insurance programs is $1,000…just like in 1975, when a loaf of bread cost 28-cents.
So 50% of the U.S. doesn’t see a dentist on a regular basis; they don’t have a happy dental home. 57% of Americans have dental insurance; that leaves 123 million adults and children on the outside looking in.
And last week, one of my all-time fave patients (and she’s a Bruin) Facebooked me a story about Brian Maixner, a waiter from Wichita, Kansas. Maixner happens to be an amazing employee, a single dad, and an all-around cool guy…except he had a smile that made him look like the meth addict he certainly was not. Maixner hoped one day “…he would have the money to buy dental insurance and fix his teeth.”
Turns out, an appreciative and generous well-to-do local attorney/customer offered to pick up the tab for Maixner’s dental care. The result, coming after full mouth extractions and dentures (supporting implants to come later), was transformative. The total cost of the care will probably come in at somewhere around $15,000. And it’s not unlikely that dental insurance would have contributed the same $1,000 average annual maximum it granted some 40-years ago when my dad’s brand new fully loaded Camarro went for about $4,500.
The title of the story reads “The Tip that changed this Waiter’s Life was Incredible and should be Unnecessary.” Took me about 2-minutes to read the story but I’ve been thinking about it ever since.
First, Maixner was obviously high risk for tooth decay and periodontal disease; his mouth was one gigantic happy hunting ground for destructive bacteria that were undoubtedly passed along to his children…and the disastrous condition of his oral health didn’t happen overnight. Brian’s mouth was basically one hell hole of infection; and today, we know unmanaged oral infections impact general health…and projected years of life expectancy.
The lack of dental insurance is definitely a factor in accessing dental care but it’s really not a valid objection. Dental insurance is a great benefit that helps pay the bills but it actually isn’t insurance at all ; it’s more like a dental discount system with 1975 coupons that, back in The Day, could buy a loaf of bread for 28-cents. If Maixner had put away the cost of one Starbuck’s tall latte every day for one year, he would have surpassed the average annual dental insurance maximum benefit…without ever having paid a premium. If Maixner had saved to buy his own insurance, the premium would have been expensive and limited in its coverage. And you might be surprised by the number of insured Americans who do not use their benefit, essentially giving away $1,000 annually.
What’s great about dentistry is its preventive nature. Investments, not unlike the latte example above, can fund diagnostic and preventive care plus oral health education for families. And these days, dental practices are far more creative in crafting individual financial agreements. And I’m still waiting for dental insurance programs to keep pace with inflation like the rest of us…on the benefits side.
I couldn’t be happier for good guy Brian Maixner; his before and after photos look more like father and son pictures. I just hope Maixner’s children don’t have to win the lottery to gain some measure of oral health…just like good ole dad.
