The high cost of avoiding dental care
Putting off dental care can lead to bigger problems. Left untreated, a small cavity can eventually lead to tooth loss, or an abscess to a major infection.
Even if you have dental insurance, your deductible and copayments can quickly add up. But putting off dental care can lead to bigger problems. Left untreated, a small cavity can eventually lead to tooth loss, an abscess to a major infection. Finding ways to get affordable dental care now will save your mouth and your money in the future.
According to the nationally representative Children’s Dental Health Project Survey released earlier this year, 37 percent of respondents or a relative had avoided dental care in the last 12 months due to cost. But preventive care can identify small and relatively affordable concerns before they become big, expensive problems.
For example, the average cost of a dental exam in San Francisco is $205, according to OKCopay, a medical costs comparison site. If your dentist finds a small cavity on your molar, the average filing price is $160. But if you don’t get regular checkups when that cavity can be found early, it could develop into a bigger problem requiring a root canal, which would cost $825. And that’s if you don’t end up at the emergency room in pain first.
In 2012, nearly 2.2 million Americans went to hospital emergency rooms with dental problems, up from 1.1 million in 2000, according to the American Dental Association, at an average cost of $749 per visit, far more than a regular checkup. Add on the referral to a dentist after the ER visit, and you’re looking at some considerable expenses.
Emerging research has also tied poor dental health to an increased risk of heart disease, and a regular dental exam could spot signs of oral cancer, digestive and bone problems, and even diabetes, which are costly, and sometimes life-threatening, diseases.
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Source: Fox News
