Dental insurance is equally important to health insurance because dental disease is still prevalent. Being protected by a dental plan and using it wisely are necessary safeguards for your entire family. Unlike medical ailments, which are usually unpredictable, most dental problems are preventable. Checkups and cleanings are the way to keep teeth healthy. With regular preventing care, problems are diagnosed in time and can be treated with less expense to both, insurer and insured, keeping the costs of dental care much lower than medical care. Generally, a local dentist provides dental care, even though sometimes the services of a specialist are required.

Consumers can choose the type of third party responsible for funding and administration of their plan. The primary responsibility of the third party is to provide the financial foundation for your dental benefits plan. There are three types of third parties. Dental Service Corporations: not-for-profit organizations to negotiate and administer contracts for dental care to individuals or specific groups of patients. Insurance Carriers: for-profit companies underwrite the financial risk of, and process payment claims for, dental services. Carriers contract with individuals or patient groups to offer a variety of dental benefits packages, often including both fee-for-service and managed care plans. Self-Funded Insurers: companies use their own funds to underwrite the expense of providing dental care to their employees. The company pays for the dental costs of its employees, usually with limitations on services and fixed-dollar allocations.

Dental benefits plans can be categorized by the options offered for selecting a dentist. Some plans allow you the freedom to choose your own dentist, while others, in exchange for lower rates, limit your choice. These two alternatives are called open and closed panel plans. Open Panel: This type of dental benefits plan allows covered patients to receive care from any dentist and allows any dentist to participate. Any dentist may accept or refuse to treat patients enrolled in the plan. Open panel plans often are described as freedom of choice plans. Closed Panel: This type of plan allows covered patients to receive care only from dentists who have signed a contract of participation with the third party. The third party contracts with a certain percentage of dentists within a particular geographic area. There are two types of closed panel plans. Preferred Provider Organization (PPO) - This plan allows a particular group of patients to receive dental care from a defined panel of dentists. The participating dentist agrees to charge less than usual fees to this specific patient base, providing savings for the plan purchaser. If the patient chooses to see a dentist who is not designated as a "preferred provider," that patient may be required to pay a greater share of the fee-for-service.

Exclusive Provider Organization (EPO) - This closed panel plan allows a particular group of patients to receive dental care only from participating dentists. Although there may be some exceptions for emergency and out-of-area care, if a patient decides to see a dentist, which is not listed on the EPO panel, charges for service will not be covered by the plan. Because participating dentists are required to offer substantial fee reductions, many dentists elect not to participate in EPO-type plans. Under some benefits plans, participating dentists may be salaried employees of the EPO. An EPO contracts with a limited number of practitioners within a geographic area. Access to necessary specialized care can be restricted. The EPO also may limit the amount of services that a patient can receive in a given calendar year.

Today's health insurance, including your dental plan, is designed to help you get the care you need at a reasonable cost. Because each person's oral health is different, costs can vary widely. To control dental treatment costs, most plans will limit the amount of care you can receive in a given year. This is done by placing a dollar "cap" or limit on the amount of benefits you can receive, or by restricting the number or type of services that are covered. Some plans may totally exclude certain services or treatment to lower costs.