He badly needs several root canals, but Medicare will only pay to have all of his teeth pulled. I hate to see him lose all his teeth at such a young age, but I have no money to help him. Are there any financial aid programs or dentists who might help? He is in a lot of pain.
2007-09-18 06:57:01 · 13 answers · asked by NY Buzz 4 in Health ➔ Dental
Check with some local universities that have dental schools. They do dental work at a fraction of what a dentist would charge. Yes, they are students but all the work is overseen by a licensed dentist. I've used them before & it is really worth it.
2007-09-18 07:05:32 · answer #1 · answered by lovemy2babies 4 · 2⤊ 0⤋
If he is in that much pain, my suggestion is to allow a dentist to pull just those teeth needing a root canal. That way he's not losing all his teeth, just the ones causing him the most trouble. Your son might check with social services in his area, tell them he is in pain and needs immediate care. If any of those teeth are in the front six, top or bottom, Medicare may pay to replace those with a bridge. When he's feeling better he can talk with a dentist's office to see what other options there might be for payment plans. They are the ones who work with those different plans and very often can give you suggestions you may not have known about.
Myst
2007-09-18 14:13:07 · answer #2 · answered by Myst 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋
I used to work in a TBI clinic. That is short for Traumatic Brain Injury. Many of the people who came to the clinic had very bad dental health due to one or more of the following: poor hygene, medication, from the accident, could not afford it. I am not sure what your son's disability is, but our office often referred patients to a Dental School. Dental schools are safe, they are overseen by licensed Dentists, but cost a fraction of what it would normally cost.
Now we do have a few rare cases. Our office had written letters to the insurance company demanding they pay for dental care because the dental problems were a result of their accident. Sometimes, the insurance company will pay. Sometimes it won't. It depends on how your son got sick/disabled and whether it is medically related to what happened to him.
Ask your doctor. See if that can be done. If not, your best option is the medical school.
There are also payment plans that can be arranged.One option is Care Credit. Depending on the amount spent you can have up to 2 years of no interest payments.
2007-09-18 17:51:37 · answer #3 · answered by Dakota 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
oh man I feel for him, I had one of those canals and it was awful bad, pain like you don't believe. if he's got lots of teeth that are bad, might be best to have them pulled cause the canals cost alot and sometimes they don't take and you gotta have them pulled too then all that moneys wasted. He can get partials on medicaid and also you can try dental teaching schools, they take patients for the students to work on and they are supervised by the teaching dentists plus they have the newest technology around. Man, I feel for him, tooth stuff is so darn painful.
2007-09-18 14:27:36 · answer #4 · answered by classeequeen 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Does he get disability. if so unless it is life threatening they wont pay. how ever ask the dentist if the have a grant program called a slide and scale grant. he should have token better of his teeth. Depends on state. he might have to loose his teeth. get dentures. it is unfortunate but with out setting up a payment plan with the dentist or find one with a slide and scale then there really is no other option. sorry good luck
2007-09-18 14:04:55 · answer #5 · answered by sassylassy2876 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
HELLO,
UNFORTUNATELY THE COVERAGE BY MEDICARE DOESN'T INCLUDE DENTAL, HOWEVER MEDICAID DOES OFFER DENTAL COVERAGE.
WHETHER THE PARTICIPATING DENTIST WILL DO A ROOT CANAL OR NOT DEPENDS ON THE DENTIST.
A ROOT CANAL IS AN INVOLVED PROCEDURE AND IT DOES COST MONEY TO DO.
EXTRACTION TO STOP THE PAIN MAY BE THE ONLY OPTION.
CHECK WITH YOUR LOCAL MEDICAID OFFICE FOR AVAILABLE DENTISTS THAT PARTICIPATE.
2007-09-18 14:15:09 · answer #6 · answered by Dr. Albert, DDS, (USA) 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
rehabilitation commission,they will help if its affecting the way you work!if you have any free clinics in your area they sometimes have a dental clinic that bases evevry thing on your income,thats how i am getting my teeth pulled,they are only charging me $40 a tooth to pull all of mine and they xrayed my whole mouth for $35.look at for dental colleges in your area they do the same thing!also you can go to affordabledentures.com,they are really cheap!they have a website at that site that tells you wether or not they have one in your state.i know they have several in texas,louisanna etc.they pull teeth and thier dentures are crazy cheap!i am going their after my dentist at the clinic gets through pulling my teeth,and its only gonna cost me $345 for both top and bottom plates together!hope this helps i know how hard it is !
2007-09-18 14:04:58 · answer #7 · answered by FLOWCOM 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/313906/how_to_become_a_patient_at_tufts_dental.html
Do you live in or near Massachusetts? A dentist wrote this article about becoming a patient at the Tufts dental school. Do you have a dental school in your area that you could call to see if they would take your son's case on? Good luck to you.
2007-09-18 16:39:22 · answer #8 · answered by Caren H 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I know our County Hospital, Cleveland Metro General has a dental clinic that works like the hospital, based on what you can afford by federal guidelines. Find out what hospital is the "County" hospital in your area and call them. Good Luck!
2007-09-18 14:02:52 · answer #9 · answered by Doug 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Most dentist offices have monthly payment programs, but he will have to see if he qualifys for them. I would call around to a few and see what they are offering.
2007-09-18 14:02:43 · answer #10 · answered by Heather B 5 · 1⤊ 2⤋