This helps save the dentist

Reduction of the dental treatment costs by clever procedure

09/02/2015

Dentist treatments can quickly become a very costly affair. However, the own contribution to dentist costs can be reduced considerably if a few simple points are taken into account. Six tips to reduce the cost of dentists leads the consumer portal „biallo“ in a recent press release. These range from the use of the additional benefits of individual health insurance companies to treatment abroad. Depending on the individual treatment costs, it is sometimes possible to save considerable sums of money.

Check offers of the health insurance
Although the statutory health insurance, for example, often pay only a fraction of the treatment costs for dentures, many health insurance companies offer special offers with discounted dental treatment as additional services. However, these presuppose that in case of doubt patients are prepared to change the dentist for this purpose. Because the discounted services offer only dentists, with whom the health insurance companies have negotiated appropriate contracts. Here, for example, patients can receive a dental cleaning for a fixed price of 50 euros or implants for a fixed price of 1,100 euros. The warranty periods are sometimes significantly longer. If you ask your own health insurance company if they have the right offers and on what terms and conditions, can therefore bring a significant cost savings.

Compare costs
Generally, it is worthwhile to compare the dentist's costs even before the start of the treatment, because here I often make significant price differences even without special contracts of the health insurance companies. For example, the cost of cleaning teeth can vary between 40 and 120 euros. Inlays, crowns and implants also show extreme price differences, reports the consumer portal „biallo“. It is crucial here with which laboratory the doctor works together and which rate of charge is the basis.

Auction dental treatments at auctions
If you want to save yourself the effort of price comparison, you can also auction your dental treatment and thus get a more cost-effective offer. For example, portals such as www.zahngebot.de, www.medikompass.de or www.2te-Zahnarztmeinung.de offer the opportunity to set their own treatment and cost plan, which the dentists can then apply for. According to the consumer portal, as a rule, 40 percent savings are possible.

Treatment by students
Significant cost savings also arise, for example, when treated by students. These are offered by numerous dental clinics that work together with a university hospital. The so-called student or patient courses, in which treatment by students of higher semester takes place, usually cost only a fraction of the usual dentist costs. Theoretically, all legally insured patients have the option to seek out appropriate student courses, with the health insurance providers granting the usual fixed grants.

Dental treatment abroad
Last but not least, those affected have the option of having their treatment carried out abroad, with Hungary, the Czech Republic, Poland and Mallorca no longer being insider tips, reports the consumer portal. Again, the usual subsidies would be granted by the health insurance and the cost savings are estimated at 30 to 50 percent. For correct billing, however, a detailed treatment and cost plan should be submitted in advance, in which the services of foreign doctors are exactly specified. To ease the procedure for the patient, some foreign dentists work together with a German colleague.

If the offers obtained are significantly cheaper than the offer of the trusted dentist, there is the option of going back into negotiations here. The more cost-effective offers represent a good bargaining base, in order to still achieve a discount on the treatment costs. (Fp)