Dental Insurance vs. Medical Insurance — What’s the Difference?

If you have a benefits package through your employer, you may have both dental insurance and medical insurance. If you aren’t familiar with all the nuances of each of your policies, you might wonder about the role that each one can play in helping you to lead a healthy and active life. This blog post provides a basic definition of each type of insurance so you can gain a better understanding of how to use them.

Dental Insurance

Dental insurance focuses exclusively on helping you to enjoy healthy teeth and gums. It has a strong preventive focus. In fact, most policies allow patients to attend two cleanings and checkups each year without paying anything out of pocket. For restorative procedures, such as fillings, crowns, and tooth replacement, you might end up paying anywhere from 20% to 60% of the total bill.

It is also common for dental insurance to have an annual maximum, which is the highest dollar amount that the insurance company will pay out within a calendar year. Often, the annual maximum is around $1,000.

Medical Insurance

Medical insurance has a much broader focus than dental insurance; it can reduce your out of pocket costs for a wide range of treatments, services, and medications that have the goal of treating or preventing illness. However, it does not cover most dental services. For example, you should not expect your medical policy to help you with your biannual dental exams, root canal therapy, or restorative services for a broken tooth.

Medical insurance has no annual maximum, but it often has a much higher deductible than dental insurance. A deductible is the amount you have to pay out of pocket before your insurance coverage kicks in. For some policies, the deductible is $5,000 or more.

How Do They Work Together?

Despite their many differences, there is occasionally a bit of overlap between dental and medical coverage. For example, many dental insurance policies cover the surgery for dental implant placement or other types of oral surgery. A number of medical policies can also be used for oral surgery.

Plus, in some instances, the two types of insurance can work together. For example, if you ever suffer a broken jaw, the team at the local ER should help you. Your medical insurance will likely pay for a portion of your ER visit. Later, you may use your dental insurance to address any problems with your teeth or gums that resulted from your broken jaw.

Navigating Your Benefits

Insurance benefits can be tricky at times. Study your coverage so you know what to expect. You can also rely on your local dental team, as well as your primary care provider’s office, to help you understand how your insurance might apply in any given situation. With their assistance, you should be able to pay as little as possible for your medical and dental care.

Meet the Practice

The team at Rubal Dentistry Azle welcomes many different dental insurance policies. In fact, we are in-network with a number of popular plans! If you have questions about how you can use your benefits to your greatest advantage, we are ready to guide you. Get in touch with our friendly staff at 817-444-2585.