The cost of an insured dental implant depends on how much your plan pays for coverage, your deductible, and maximum coverage limits.
Let’s say you’ve already exceeded your annual deductible and need a non-major dental implant procedure. It costs $3,000. Let’s say your plan pays 50% for dental implants and has a maximum annual coverage of $2,000. In this case, the plan would pay up to $1,500 for any dental coverage and you would pay the remaining $1,500.
Dr. Jaclyn Tomsic, a Cleveland-based oral and maxillofacial surgeon who specializes in implants, warns of additional costs that go beyond the surgical fees to place the implant, including dentist fees for the crown and its replacement.
Tomsic says it may be a good idea to spread dental implant work over two calendar years if your plan has annual coverage caps.
“If only one implant is needed, it may be beneficial to schedule implant surgery in the last half of the plan year and a crown in the first half of the following plan year so that the insurer covers a part of both the implant surgery and the crown,” says Tomsic.
Discuss with the dentist and oral surgeon the work that will be involved.
“I always recommend a consultation with your oral surgeon first to discuss what’s involved, after which financial matters can be resolved so there are no surprises,” says Tomsic. “I also recommend a consultation with your dentist for a similar discussion of the restorative part of the implant process, including any associated fees.”
