The state of Alabama has both individual and employer-based plans where a customer can go to any dentist of his choice. Dental insurance companies in Alabama have plans for groups as small as one. There are a quite a few dental discount plans in the Alabama market that contain lists of average quality dentists while others use national PPO networks that offer a wide choice of dentists.
One is likely to come across certain discount plans that cost a lot more than many others and quite often these plans are part of some multilevel marketing program. It is advisable to ignore such plans because there is no reason whatsoever to waste money and enrich some multi-level marketing salesperson when there are much better plans available for much less.
Dental expenses in most families across Alabama exceed all their other medical costs. For instance a root canal and crown could cost anywhere between $ 800 to $ 1000 or more while something like Orthodontia on a few children could blow a hole in vital savings. Both root canal and crown as well as orthodontia are available for the individual and group. There are better plans that even provide free cleanings, exams or x-rays as the networks in these plans are often used by renowned dental insurance plans and are more widely accepted.
Alabama has two different types of dental plans for individuals and groups:
Alabama Dental Discount Plans
There are thousands of providers of this discount dental service plan and it provides discounts on a number of plans such as preventive, basic, restorative and orthodontia resulting in savings of as much as 40 % or even more. Many families save substantially on routine cleanings and oral exams to cover the cost of the plan though some plans include free cleanings, x-rays and examinations.
Alabama PPO Dental Plans - Any Dentist, Anywhere
This plan is what is commonly referred to as "real dental insurance" or Alabama PPO Dental Plans. The biggest advantage of this plan is that it allows the plan member to go to any dentist of his choice and it pays him or the dentist a certain amount for each procedure. Additionally, the plan includes a special Aetna PPO network under which if a plan member uses the network dentist even if he does not have to, he can receive services at the PPO discount rates. Such a combination makes these plans very effective.
Another major advantage of the Alabama PPO Dental Plans is that they do not have any waiting period. The plan could be purchased in a particular month and be paid for a service provided the following month. This also holds good for the Discount Dental Plan.