Is Your Dentist Taking Advantage of Your Medicare Plan?

I’ve had seriously bad experiences with dentists in recent years and it’s become alarming. Growing up, I always thought the dentist was trustworthy. These days there are bad apples who are openly trying to suck out as much Medicare and Medicaid money as they can. If you live in a small town this may not be true, but I live in the urban Metropolis of Los Angeles.

Playing musical chairs with my teeth

I’ve changed dentists numerous times because I moved or changed my medical plan. I had a wonderful dentist when I was living in Hollywood decades ago. When I came in for an appointment, he always remembered our past conversations and took an interest in my family and career.

I had to switch dentists when I moved across town. With two small kids to deal with, I didn’t want to spend all day driving there.

Before I was on Medicare, I found a dentist who advertised heavily (a red flag) and also pushed cosmetic dental treatments. He started recommending expensive treatments to me from the get-go, so I never went back.

I met an older female dentist at one of my networking groups and started going to her. She had a traditional and honest practice, and I was happy with her until she retired.

Gently dentistry may not be all it seems

For a while, I had an iffy dental plan but found a practice with the word “gentle” on their sign. That dentist was okay but also retired and sold her practice to another dentist. After about two visits he began finding things wrong with my teeth. “You need a deep cleaning” then “You have six cavities” then “we need to remove your mercury fillings” then “You need a root canal.”

I asked to have my X-rays sent to my sister-in-law who’s had a long-time dental practice in Sonoma.  She told me my teeth were perfectly fine and I definitely didn’t need a root canal. I knew I had to find yet another new dentist.

We moved and I found another older female dentist who never seemed to have anyone in her office but didn’t try to upsell me except for a mouthguard that I hated. She made me feel relaxed when I was there and never saw the “problems” the previous guy had.

When I went on Medicare and moved again my health care plan was no longer in her network. My new plan listed another dentist with the word “gentle” in his branding so I made an appointment. For the first few visits, he seemed okay. I was impressed that he deep-cleaned my teeth using a numbing gel instead of Novocain. I also liked that he had a state-of-the-art X-ray machine that didn’t require jamming cardboard thingies in my mouth.

But then, things turned ugly

I went in for a checkup and had regular X-rays. He told me there was no change in my teeth but he had a list of optional tasks he wanted to do. That included replacing my mercury fillings, filling in “non” cavities, and filing a front tooth that was worn.

My teeth felt fine so I told him I only wanted a cleaning because the rest wasn’t covered in my plan and was not in my budget. He gave me a prescription for a mouthwash to use for three weeks until my next appointment. When I came back, all he did was have the hygienist polish my teeth without even cleaning them first! What was the purpose of the prescription mouthwash?

That was weird so I asked the dentist when I should come back for my next appointment. He said he wouldn’t clean my teeth until I was ready to do all the other optional work. It was like my teeth were being held hostage.

I thought all this nonsense with dentists was only happening to me until my girlfriend, who is also on Medicare, told me her dentist was trying to upsell her on unnecessary work as well.

My dental plan changed yet again so I switched to a new dentist again. She is a woman and so far seems fine, although she insisted I needed another deep cleaning and wanted to give me some laser treatments to fill in my deep pockets. (I think she wanted to line her deep pockets instead.) I went for the deep cleaning and nixed the laser. At least her office calls to remind me of my appointments, unlike the last guy.

What has happened to integrity in dentistry?

I know dentists don’t get paid well with Medicare and Medicaid, but their hands are in our mouths! I don’t want a con artist playing with my choppers.

I’m beginning to think all the “Norman Rockwell” style dentists we knew as kids are a thing of the past. It’s aggravating!

Have you had bad experiences with your dentist? Please leave a comment below.