{"id":100,"date":"2019-11-20T19:42:09","date_gmt":"2019-11-20T19:42:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/?p=100"},"modified":"2025-02-04T20:32:16","modified_gmt":"2025-02-04T20:32:16","slug":"everything-you-need-to-know-to-maximize-dental-insurance-benefits","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/everything-you-need-to-know-to-maximize-dental-insurance-benefits\/","title":{"rendered":"Everything You Need to Know to Maximize Dental Insurance Benefits"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Navigating any kind of insurance policy causes most people to either immediately stress out or space out. While <a href=\"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/dental-insurance.html\">dental insurance<\/a> can seem complicated to understand at first, knowing how your plan works and what treatments are and aren\u2019t covered can help save you from having to empty your pockets paying for procedures you need to have. Read on to learn everything you need to know in order to maximize dental insurance benefits while optimizing your oral health. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<!--more-->\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">When Does Your Insurance Plan Expire?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Depending on what type of dental insurance plan you have, it\nmay run on a fiscal year or a traditional calendar year. Most people who have\nprivate dental insurance have benefits that expire at the end of the calendar\nyear, which means that yours will most likely renew on January 1<sup>st<\/sup>.\nWhen this happens, any benefits that you haven\u2019t used will be lost, and you\u2019ll\nneed to repay your fees, like your deductible, before your provider will start\npaying for the cost of your treatments. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What Dental Services Does Your Plan Cover?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The best way to learn what specific dental treatments that\nyour plan will cover is to contact them directly and ask. Otherwise, most\ncompanies use a 100-80-50 structure. All that means is that they pay for 100\npercent of the cost of preventive dental care (including your two covered\ncheckups and cleanings annually), 80 percent of all basic treatments like fillings,\nand 50 percent of major treatments like root canals and tooth extractions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Have You Taken Advantage of Your Checkups and Cleanings? <\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Dental plans usually include two checkups and cleanings that\nare completely covered every year. That\u2019s because they encourage patients to be\nproactive about their oral health so they can avoid needing invasive and\nextensive treatments. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When you visit your dentist for a checkup and cleaning, they\u2019ll\nexamine your mouth in search of any developing oral health problems like\ncavities. This allows them to catch and treat the issues before they turn into\nsomething more severe, causing you severe pain and discomfort. They\u2019ll then\nprofessionally clean your teeth and remove any tartar, keeping additional\ndamage from occurring. Since two semi-annual visits are already covered, it\u2019s\nbest to take advantage of them to keep your oral health on track and avoid hefty\nout-of-pocket costs from serious procedures. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Will You Meet or Exceed Your Annual Maximum? <\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Insurance companies usually place a cap on the amount of\nservices that they\u2019ll pay for during the year, called the maximum. The average amount\nis between 1,000 and 1,500 dollars, meaning that any remaining balance that\nhasn\u2019t been used by January 1<sup>st<\/sup> will fall back into the pockets of\nyour insurance provider. In order to maximize your benefits, be sure to meet or\nexceed your annual capped amount and get all the dental treatments you need\nbefore it resets. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>With the right dental team by your side, you\u2019ll have help\nmaximizing your benefits and getting the most out of your monthly investment in\ninsurance. They\u2019ll also make sure your oral health remains in tip-top shape\nwhile saving you from unnecessary out-of-pocket costs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>About the Author<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Dr. Chris Combs has over two decades of experience as a\ndentist and takes great pride in providing his patients with honest and high-quality\ncare. He makes sure that his team does everything they can to help patients\nmaximize their dental insurance benefits and save money. He\u2019s also an\nin-network dentist with BlueCross BlueShield, Delta Dental, and Cigna, and\naccepts insurance that he isn\u2019t an in-network provider with. For questions or\nto schedule a routine checkup and cleaning before your benefits restart on\nJanuary 1<sup>st<\/sup>, visit Combs &amp; Associates Family Dentistry\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/contact-us.html\">website<\/a> or call 479-488-6131.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Navigating any kind of insurance policy causes most people to either immediately stress out or space out. While dental insurance can seem complicated to understand at first, knowing how your plan works and what treatments are and aren\u2019t covered can help save you from having to empty your pockets paying for procedures you need to have. Read on to learn everything you need to know in order to maximize dental insurance benefits while optimizing your&#8230; <a class=\"read more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/everything-you-need-to-know-to-maximize-dental-insurance-benefits\/\">(Read More)<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":101,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-100","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v24.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Maximize Dental Insurance Benefits Before They Expire | Oral Health<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"On January 1st, your dental plan will restart. Here is everything to know before then to maximize dental insurance benefits and optimize your oral health.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/everything-you-need-to-know-to-maximize-dental-insurance-benefits\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Maximize Dental Insurance Benefits Before They Expire | Oral Health\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"On January 1st, your dental plan will restart. Here is everything to know before then to maximize dental insurance benefits and optimize your oral health.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/everything-you-need-to-know-to-maximize-dental-insurance-benefits\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Combs and Associates Dental Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2019-11-20T19:42:09+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-02-04T20:32:16+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/AdobeStock_59161064__1574278547_18592.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"800\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"533\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"combsdental\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"combsdental\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/everything-you-need-to-know-to-maximize-dental-insurance-benefits\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/everything-you-need-to-know-to-maximize-dental-insurance-benefits\/\",\"name\":\"Maximize Dental Insurance Benefits Before They Expire | Oral Health\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/everything-you-need-to-know-to-maximize-dental-insurance-benefits\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/everything-you-need-to-know-to-maximize-dental-insurance-benefits\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/AdobeStock_59161064__1574278547_18592.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2019-11-20T19:42:09+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-02-04T20:32:16+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/4825fae44404e54485fb87689c41293a\"},\"description\":\"On January 1st, your dental plan will restart. Here is everything to know before then to maximize dental insurance benefits and optimize your oral health.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/everything-you-need-to-know-to-maximize-dental-insurance-benefits\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/everything-you-need-to-know-to-maximize-dental-insurance-benefits\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/everything-you-need-to-know-to-maximize-dental-insurance-benefits\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/AdobeStock_59161064__1574278547_18592.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/AdobeStock_59161064__1574278547_18592.jpg\",\"width\":800,\"height\":533},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/everything-you-need-to-know-to-maximize-dental-insurance-benefits\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Everything You Need to Know to Maximize Dental Insurance Benefits\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"Combs and Associates Dental Blog\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/4825fae44404e54485fb87689c41293a\",\"name\":\"combsdental\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ae3e81f4dcdfe82282da9a46884c9622a0dd3fdb09fc5a0b0e5d43663e1dcf17?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ae3e81f4dcdfe82282da9a46884c9622a0dd3fdb09fc5a0b0e5d43663e1dcf17?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"combsdental\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/author\/combsdental\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Maximize Dental Insurance Benefits Before They Expire | Oral Health","description":"On January 1st, your dental plan will restart. Here is everything to know before then to maximize dental insurance benefits and optimize your oral health.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/everything-you-need-to-know-to-maximize-dental-insurance-benefits\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Maximize Dental Insurance Benefits Before They Expire | Oral Health","og_description":"On January 1st, your dental plan will restart. Here is everything to know before then to maximize dental insurance benefits and optimize your oral health.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/everything-you-need-to-know-to-maximize-dental-insurance-benefits\/","og_site_name":"Combs and Associates Dental Blog","article_published_time":"2019-11-20T19:42:09+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-02-04T20:32:16+00:00","og_image":[{"width":800,"height":533,"url":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/AdobeStock_59161064__1574278547_18592.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"combsdental","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"combsdental","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/everything-you-need-to-know-to-maximize-dental-insurance-benefits\/","url":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/everything-you-need-to-know-to-maximize-dental-insurance-benefits\/","name":"Maximize Dental Insurance Benefits Before They Expire | Oral Health","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/everything-you-need-to-know-to-maximize-dental-insurance-benefits\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/everything-you-need-to-know-to-maximize-dental-insurance-benefits\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/AdobeStock_59161064__1574278547_18592.jpg","datePublished":"2019-11-20T19:42:09+00:00","dateModified":"2025-02-04T20:32:16+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/4825fae44404e54485fb87689c41293a"},"description":"On January 1st, your dental plan will restart. Here is everything to know before then to maximize dental insurance benefits and optimize your oral health.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/everything-you-need-to-know-to-maximize-dental-insurance-benefits\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/everything-you-need-to-know-to-maximize-dental-insurance-benefits\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/everything-you-need-to-know-to-maximize-dental-insurance-benefits\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/AdobeStock_59161064__1574278547_18592.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/AdobeStock_59161064__1574278547_18592.jpg","width":800,"height":533},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/everything-you-need-to-know-to-maximize-dental-insurance-benefits\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Everything You Need to Know to Maximize Dental Insurance Benefits"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/","name":"Combs and Associates Dental Blog","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/4825fae44404e54485fb87689c41293a","name":"combsdental","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ae3e81f4dcdfe82282da9a46884c9622a0dd3fdb09fc5a0b0e5d43663e1dcf17?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ae3e81f4dcdfe82282da9a46884c9622a0dd3fdb09fc5a0b0e5d43663e1dcf17?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"combsdental"},"url":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/author\/combsdental\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/100","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=100"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/100\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":207,"href":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/100\/revisions\/207"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/101"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=100"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=100"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.combsdental.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=100"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}