DO YOU REALLY NEED A DENTAL INSURANCE?

By- DentistChannel Online

Life is surprising and perhaps strange. We Live in a world where one can’t bear a slightest scratch mark or a minor dent on their car and hence make sure that their car has been insured with the best possible Policy which would cover most of the accidental related damages. However, when it comes to a Person’s Healthcare it’s either ignored or not been taking very seriously. As per a report released by Health Profile (NHP) in April only 27 per cent Indians have health insurance which means out of India’s 135 crore people, 100 crores have no cover against catastrophic health expenses, a serious reason to worry! To top these astonishing numbers comes Dental Insurance which has even failed to reach a common man, having one is still miles away. DentistChannel Online has tried to jot down the list of reasons as to why a common man fails to understand the dire need to insure himself/herself with Health-related insurance especially a Dental Insurance and the benefits a policy holder can enjoy while having one.

1.3 Billion Population multiplied by 32 Teeth! This Definitely tell us why dentistry is so important. Oral Hygiene in general, a very serious issue is taken very lightly in a Country like India. The habit of Brushing twice a day and using a Mouthwash thereafter is still decades away. The sad part is that people fail to understand that most of the diseases are caused due to lack of Healthy Oral Hygiene. More than 80% Indians do not brush their teeth before going to bed. This is the root cause towards an unhealthy next morning with Bad Breath. Our Mouth is full of tiny food particles from Breakfast, Lunch, an Evening Snack and Dinner and hence Brushing teeth before going to bed is 10X More important than in the Morning. What makes us Indians, who are supposedly told to be Hardworking and Intelligent fail to take care of our own Oral Hygiene? The reason is Carelessness towards our Health! The assumption of Brushing once in the morning suffices our responsibility towards oral health is completely wrong and needs to change as soon as possible. We’re all in a rat race to get wealthy and hence we fail to take care of our own precious body especially our dental hygiene. This gradually burns our pockets due to minor as well as Major Dental Problems. Remember, Hospital Expenses shouldn’t be at the cost of your Happiness.

Eventually, this calls us for a casual attitude towards Dental Insurance. A single cavity can result to a chain of problems in the life of a person. Its Understood that a person takes Dental Insurance super seriously only when it has caused a massive hole in his/her pocket. Apart from only receiving a dental Insurance there’s a plethora of various other services that you receive:

The Policy Holder is very much aware of his/her Dental problems and is hence motivated to visit the Dentist on a regular basis and maintain a healthy oral hygiene.
The Policy holder can enjoy regular benefits such as teeth Whitening, Dental consultations, Digital X-Rays and many other services.
Policy holder can benefit savings on the routine dental check-up procedures.
Benefits such as Composite teeth filing, amalgam, placing steel crowns on the primary teeth etc, any minor infections in the mouth like infected tooth nerves etc are also covered.
Tooth removal cost followed by routine visits can also be covered.
Management of mild infections and lesions and some minor surgical procedures like teeth biopsy, drainage of oral infections (minor case) are covered by the dental insurance.
Now that you know that there are many minor and major benefits that a patient receives while having a Dental Insurance, The Million Dollar Question is which Dental Insurance should you go for?

We personally don’t recommend any Specific Dental Insurance as all have their own pros and cons. However, following are the key points you should consider while selecting a Dental Insurance:

Try to examine the exact cause for you to take a Dental Insurance.
Check if all your requirements are met through the Dental Insurance.
Study the selected policy in detail.
Speak to an individual from the dental Fraternity to clear out all your doubts pertaining to the insurance.
DO NOT hurry while selecting the right dental Insurance.
Read all scheme related documents before choosing it.
Dental Insurance is a must! Take it even you couldn’t benefit from it. You never know what could happen to your teeth. Do not fall prey to advertisements which say, “claim 7 lacs by investing just Rs.17 a day” and many such other attractive schemes. These do not fulfil any basic criteria and might result in minimum treatment options. The system of oral healthcare is still not very well defined and articulated. Hence, the measurable of efficiency in terms of goals and purposes of the oral care system is still nascent in India compared to the western world.  It needs a lot of expertise, pre-defined protocols so that India can be termed as a country efficiently practising Dental Insurance. Also, the practice of providing dental health services to people under a public health measure is missing in India. Nevertheless, sooner or later every citizen would have to get themselves insured. We look forward to the day when “Cosmetic Dentistry” would be covered through a dental Insurance in India.

Everyone deserves a Charming Smile!

If you have any questions with regards to dental Insurance write back to us and our team would be happy to help you.