No Insurance No Teeth... No Future! | Philip A. Farruggio

[Tace]

Philip A. Farruggio -- World News Trust

Aug. 13, 2015

You know things must really be getting bad when the mainstream media starts asking questions. Even if the questions dance around the truth a bit, it still is powerful to see it there.

The August 10th issue of USA Today on page 5A had this title: More Americans turning to dentures to get, keep jobs. Now, this in itself is a bit of a con job by the writer and editor of that paper.

The article goes on to say how "nearly one in five of working age adults in some Southern and Appalachian states have lost six or more teeth." It goes on to state that 45 million Americans face dental care shortages, especially in rural areas. Then, to add salt onto their readership's truth seeking, the article infers that "the need has spurred oral care professionals to respond with new ways to make dentures quickly and inexpensively to help those patients get back into the workforce." What hogwash! The cause, in most cases, of this dilemma, is that many of us just cannot afford to have the preventative dental care that would not allow our teeth to go missing in the first place!

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http://worldnewstrust.com/no-insurance-no-teeth-no-future-philip-a-farruggio

[haikugal]

1. Very true...preventive care is more than many can afford.

[misterhighwasted]

2. Dental care should just be included in health care ins.

Why is it sepearate anyway?
Well, other than profit.

[stage left]

3. People lose their teeth because they can't afford the high price of Dental Care.

Then they're laughed at because they've lost their teeth. Without insurance a simple filling can cost as much as $185.00. Anybody else think that's highway robbery?

[Hassin Bin Sober]

8. My dentist purchased a $350k crown making machine and now half my teeth need crowns.

When he was showing off the machine he said it "costs as much as a condo"

A buddy of mine in dental sales said, yep, $350k. And now the guy has to do a bunch of crowns per month to pay for it.

I did crack an old filling tooth in February. That crown and 3 filling sucked my insurance dry for me and my partner for the year.

Oh yeah, he has a new tool that finds microscopic cavities before they are noticeable. More bs. My dental business buddy says often times these microscopic cavities will go away on their own and never develop.

I forgot I had referred this dentist to another friend. My friend told me he had 4 new cavities and was upset his mouth was falling apart. Like me, he was wondering wtf is going on... Until I got wise. I feel embarrassed I referred him.


I've been meaning to look in to these "micro cavities" :

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/Dental/unnecessary-fillings-dentists-drill/story?id=15067549

[4lbs]

14. A lot of microcavities are caused by the drinking of soda like Coca-Cola or Pepsi.

Besides having a lot of sugar, the carbonation/fizz is acidic in nature, which does gradually erode teeth over a long period.

I rarely drink soda anymore, substituting something like Hawaiian Fruit Punch if I crave it. Besides having no carbonation, it contains much less sugar than Coke or Pepsi.

12 ounces of Coca-Cola contain 39 grams of sugar. That is 3.25 grams per ounce. Also those 12 ounces (equivalent to one can), are 140 calories.

8 ounces of Hawaiian Punch contain 14 grams of sugar. That is 1.75 grams per ounce. 12 ounces therefore contain 21 grams of sugar, and are only 90 calories.

[Hoyt]

4. Not saying it's right, but reason Dental Insurance is so expensive is they pretty much

know most people who purchase it are going to spend up to the max. So, it's going to cost roughly the max plus an admin fee. Of course, if it's a employer plan, they may pick up a bunch of the cost.

Now, if it were mandated for everyone, it might be a bit cheaper. But when it's elective, insurers know only folks who need it are going to buy it. We can blame the insurance companies, but no one is going to sell you insurance for $20/month (or whatever) knowing you are very likely to use the couple of thousand of coverage the policy allows.

Yes, I would love for everyone -- including me -- to have coverage for no or little cost. But, it ain't gonna happen. We have a hard enough time getting coverage for cancer, heart conditions, etc.

[glinda]

5. We used to pay big money for dental Insurance but they would not

cover my 30,000 surgery at all. No surgery cuz I cannot afford it but now we don't throw our money away to them.

[kristopher]

6. No, the reason is that the dental industry is an old fashioned guild.

The industry itself has total control over the flow of materials and services.

They maintain a state of high demand/low supply to provide exorbitant profits.

Just like the rest of the health care industry except they have eliminated even the oversight that insurance companies provide on price.

[Hoyt]

7. I hear you, but I think a crown would cost 4 times as much if a doc or

hospital did it.

They do have an effective union.

[kristopher]

9. I know where you're coming from

I recently learned that my insurance company can make me aware of the different types of providers in the area for things like X-rays, cat scans or sonograms.

If you go to a hospital they likely can bill a lot higher because their rates are set by them being a trauma/emergency center.
At the other end of the price spectrum are privately owned or chain facilities that specialize in a narrow range of services. They compete on price and are usually only a small fraction of the trauma center price.

I'm not defending hospitals or the medical profession; it is a cancer on top of a capitalistic tumor.

ETA: Oh yeah. I forgot to post this link to a Mexican dental clinic just over the border from Yuma AZ. Check out their prices.

http://www.dentaldepartures.com/dentist/ciro-dental/

[Hoyt]

10. Those are good prices.

[Doctor_J]

12. Yup. A perfect free market example. And no one in the government has the guts to say

"THe health of Americans is too important to be burdened by obscene profits and useless middlemen called 'insurance companies'"

[damnedifIknow]

11. Even dental insurance doesn't guarantee

Depends on the coverage and co-pay.

[raccoon]

13. ITA. If you've got some age on you, and still got most of your teeth,

the vast majority it's because you were fortunate enough to have good dental insurance
and/or the do-re-mi to pay for dental care and be able to keep your teeth.

[alarimer]

15. Dental insurance is bullshit

It hardly covers anything. I paid $148 for a cleaning the other day, even with insurance. I hadn't been in three years, so it was a little more intense than it would have been.

I consider it a good investment. If I take care of my teeth, I will have a lot fewer issues later on.

But still, a lot of people can't afford that.