Hi everyone. I haven't been to a dentist for a very long time (I know, very bad) and I have booked an appointment for next week so wondering if the quoted prices are reasonable. The receptionist on the phone told me since I am a new patient I'll need to have a complete/comprehensive oral examination, as well as scale and clean (he mentioned about 3 or so dental item codes but silly me failed to note them down) and it will all cost around $337. This is in Adelaide, so is that a reasonable price or nah? Also, I don't have health cover in case anyone is wondering. Tia
Complete Oral Examination + Scale & Clean for $337?
AussieDaddy on 19/03/2021 - 14:00
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I went to Pacific Smiles Dental for the no gap checkup, they did all lots of stuff included x-ray, the bill came out was $350+ but yea, didn't pay a dime
No, the bill is the extras cover in your health insurance.
Medibank is better at the moment with 2/6 waiting periods waived until end of March.
If all you need is preventive treatment you are basically paid money (in form of various vouchers on live better rewards) by Medibank. Dental+free specs+some silly challenges easily give you $50+ vouchers.
What are the vouchers for?
Anything that's available in their catalogue. My preferred one is Amcal.
Thanks for this. I signed up, $16.50 and I got a check up and clean (~$300 paid nothing), need to get two fillings (~$300 will need to pay ~$80). Also getting two $45 massages for free because why not.
Actually, if you knew you need so many services you should have gone with the top extra 90 instead of the essential extras. It costs you abt 3 times the price but you will only pay $30 (10%) for your fillings and getting $59 back on your 105 massages or $40 on 205 massages. This should open the door to some completely/almost free massages.
Besides you also get $250 in specs instead of just $200.
The essential extras is only good if you know you do not need any treatments. However, if you would like a few massages then top is still a better choice as you get $20 more back in just 1 session.
But still, I would say it is a pretty good beginning if this is your first attempt with these gimmicky extras covers. They run these promos once in a while, sometimes in the form of combined hospital extras only (you can easily drop the hospital covers after signing up) so there are plenty of opportunities to improve your understanding of how they work to your advantage.@truetypezk: I didn't know I needed the fillings, it would have worked out slightly cheaper (pay $48 premiums instead of $16, pay $31 instead of $78 for fillings) it's only $15 difference in the end anyway. The main thing is 1 of them is urgent as there is a cavity that's starting to get a bit close to the nerve and that was caught in time. I hate flossing and I'm not good at it, so I've I've now bought a water flosser so hopefully with the filing and proper care it won't get worse.
The massages are $45 and I get back $44.40 and they waive the 60c so completely free anyway. I'm only keeping it for the 2 weeks so it's a pretty good deal anyway. I only actually need it for about 4 days, but not sure I'm comfortable asking to cancel 4 days in after making about $650 in claims, $16.50 seems like a good price for everything.
I wasn't planning on getting the massages when I signed up, just getting them because they're free. I don't need any optical and I can't get that just because it's free. Maybe I'll get an eye test just in case though, it's been a while, but I haven't had any issues.
Thanks for the tips and next time I'll have have a look at more cover options, I thought I was just getting a free check up and clean, so I went with the cheapest.
@Miss B: Make sure the massages you claim is 105 (30+ mins) not 205(up to 30 mins). Do you live in some remote areas? The cheapest 40 mins massages I have seen in Melbourne costs around $60 and some goes to 80.
Eye tests are covered by medicare anyway. Extras cover is only useful if you have some (even the slightest) need for a corrective lense. You can get a pair of sunnies for free as long as you are not perfect vision.
@truetypezk: Dodgy shopping centre one. They put it through as 105, it was 30 mins. It was quite good though, feel a lot better, but still have some small problem areas.
I have just upgraded to the Top 90% and it's only going to cost $27 extra for the fortnight because it's a few days in. I might look at getting a couple of longer massages. The eye test was just to see if I need any optical stuff, but I'm pretty sure I don't. They assured me my 2/6 month waiting periods would still be waived. Thanks for all of your advice and help.
@Miss B: That explains it. Normally 30 mins ones costs around $40~ish. Actually I always wondered why dont they come up with a special 31 mins sessions just for the sake of insurance members :)
Since you have upgraded to top 90, you should pop in to some physio and chiro to see if they have a better solution for problematic areas. It should be less than $10 out of pockets with top 90 cover if you can find a members choice provider near you.
I heard from my friend they are typically reluctant to waive the 2/6m waiting periods on upgrades so make sure you get a quote before the actual service to see if the waiver has been processed correctly. I have never tried upgrading myself, just choose the one I need directly.
Also another "hack" is if you need to extend your cover for a few days (less than a typical billing cycle), you can do so by changing your direct debit date BEFORE it is due. You can change the next debit date to the date you want to extend it and it will ask you to make a partial payment for that few days.@truetypezk: Thanks again. I've checked in the app and put through a quote for the dental (again in the app) I'm getting today and it's all upgraded with the WPs waived. He did say it was because it's within a couple of days of signing up. My policy is showing as paid until 01/04, when it will take ~$50. So I could actually just get my fillings and one more massage and cancel without paying any more by the look of it.
@Miss B: When did you sign up? I thought normally their billing date is on the 11th each month. The premium is going to change on 1 April this year so make sure you have read what the date means correctly.
@truetypezk: I started the policy on the 26th. It's fortnightly. I think it's just a coincidence that it put my payment on 1 April. It says direct debit due date is 1 April. If I go to change the direct debit date it says I'm paid to 31 March and wants me to make a payment if I change my direct debit date to after 1 April. I think it's just the date the $16 I paid took it to.
@Miss B: It does not seem to add up. $16 premium is abt 2 weeks worths on essentials 75, which puts your paid up date to about 11th April. If your premium is paid until 31 March you should have only been charged like $6/7. The initial quote/payment period you chose during sign up is not typically followed by medibank and they will bill you a different amount to cover your policy until their next invoice date, which is normally 11th. So you can check your credit card transactions online to see how much they actually charged you.
@truetypezk: They ended up fixing it, so they took the $27 they had said they would, it just didn't show in the app they were going to. I'm paid until the 8th now. It turns out one eye is a tiny bit off for distances, so I'm getting a pair of sunnies and a pair of regular glasses. I'm up to over $900 in benefits now, for $44.
@Miss B: Yeah I am sure you will still be better off with it regardless of how they bill you. If you dont need regular glasses I think specsavers will give you 25% off for just 1 pair of sunnies. You might be able to go up to the 249/299 range with polarized lense and/or anti glare coatings.
@truetypezk: I found some $199 pairs I liked and got polarised. I actually really love the regular glasses, I'm not sure how much use I'll get out of them though.
@Miss B: Btw I use a combination of waterpik, flosses and piksters. For me I find waterpik is good for a quick and easy clean but it is certainly not as thorough as flossing/piksters. Flossing takes out the under gingival plaques while piksters are more effective for the interdental grooves which cant be scraped out with flossing.
If you try your waterpik first and then floss, you should still be able to floss out a pretty significant amount of disgusting plaques. Just try and work out a good balance between acceptable dental hygiene and reasonable time/effort spent on it. With regular dental visits and professional cleaning it should not be a problem to maintain a cavity free mouth:)
@truetypezk: Hi @truetypezk it seems waiving off waiting period for top extras has been extended until June end. Does it cover root canal treatment without waiting period? Thanks
@SudhaChunduri: I Googled root canal item numbers and got an estimate on item 417 and it says $0 benefits, I think it comes under "Surgical Dental Procedures And Extractions" which has a 12 month waiting period. I don't think they ever waive 12 month waiting periods, but some health funds might have 6 month waiting period on root canals.
Phone a few different dentists and get quotes - you'll be surprised at the difference. $337 sounds expensive, however depends on what was included. This should give you an idea:
https://www.choice.com.au/health-and-body/dentists-and-denta…
It's about $200 at my place in Melbourne for a full check-up and clean, wasn't any different for initial consult other than a bulk billed X-ray.
$199 here, so, yes the op needs to keep looking.
$99 promotion at Preston supreme dental, including general check, scale and clean.
Where abouts in Melbourne?
The dentist I have used has been in Highett.
I've been to the dentist school at my local university a couple of times, it cost $50 for a year. They give you a full exam, x-ray, and cleaning and will do basic fillings if you need them.
Worth seeing if you have a local school that you could go visit. The only downside was that appointments are booked in for 1.5hrs and that's how long it takes for the cleaning and x-rays etc and any further work you need to come back for another appointment.
which one do you go to?
Newcastle Uni - Ourimbah Campus
Just thought I'll let you know that Newcastle Uni doesn't have a dental school. So you're not actually being seen by dental students. They do however train hygienists/therapists under their Bachelor of Oral Health program, so you are seeing a trainee hygienist/therapist.
Though Newcastle Uni does have an accounting school, so perhaps the accounting students will be searching for where you keep your money.
Why so long? Is it because they're supervised by someone and also doing teaching at the same time?
Yes that's right, it's really a lesson that you are taking part in. Mostly the students are on their own but they keep checking in with the qualified dentist to make sure they're not doing anything wrong.
Yeah makes sense. I've done the apprentice/student haircuts for free (or cheap) before and they also take ages! Figured my time was worth more than that though so don't do that anymore!
@dust: Yeah haircuts are one thing as they are pretty cheap, but for dental work like a clean, xray and small fillings it can get pretty expensive so easier to justify the time.
I mean the other downside is a student is working on you and there is a small but real risk they'll stuff something up. A real dentist has this too obviously, but lower risk than a student.
You're right but it's not lie they're doing major work so the risks are fairly small, although it did take one student a number of jabs before they got the anaesthetic right once.
They are supervised by a normal dentist as a demonstrator usually if that helps with some concerns
This, back in my youth, had to have one tooth removed. Not a hard one. Student dentist had a vice, a chisel and hammer, going at it for over 90 minutes. The nurse said afterwards he butchered the job. Had a pretty serious headache after that one!
Dental schools in nsw are who see people with a health care card. They don’t really see other patients.
Here's some charges from my dentist before any insurance benefits:-
Examination (012) $50
Consultation (014) $45
Remove Calculus (114) $98
Remove plaque (111) $ 61
Photo records (072/073) $33
X ray (036) $90
Filling 3 surface (533) $224These are definitely cheaper than 90% of dentists.
who is your dentist ? or atleast, what suburb location ?
I’m in WA
Mine as well for people to compare, also WA:
Comprehensive Oral Exam (011) $62
Periodic Oral Evaluation (012) $57
Intraoral X-Ray per Exp (022) $40
O.P.G. - Panoramic Radiograph (037) $100
Removal of Calculus Inital Appointment (114) $102.00
Remineralizing Agent Application (121) $37.00
Adhsv Restore 1 Surf-post (531) $154.00
Adhsv Restore 2 Surf-post (532) $220.00May be different years a part and may be up to 5 years old so take with a grain of salt.
You can get a package on Groupon for less than $100. Never tried them, no idea if they're good or push upsells or what you get/quality is like but might be worth looking at. In the UK this was common way to get relatively cheap teeth cleaning.
https://www.groupon.com.au/deals/dental-excellence-adelaide-…
You could get it done 3 times for less than your quoted price.
Yeah I’ve used a $99 Groupon the last 3 visits (to different dentists) for a clean, scale, check up and X-rays - it’s a great way to try them out and whilst all have been great but the latest one is probably the dentist I’ll stick with. Obviously just check out several reviews for the dentist before buying.
Thanks everyone. I thought the price might be steep too. They said it's just the first time as a new patient and will be cheaper in the future. Will call other dentists and might cancel this appointment. Cheers
Depends what's included, but scale clean fluoride, x-ray and physical exam should be closer to 250 or 200 if you're lucky. From memory.
Other places offer discounts for the first visit in the hope of attracting new customers.
Definitely! Was wondering why would they charge a new customer more rather than giving them a discount. If this first visit isn't good enough I'll definitely give them a miss in the future.
I think the first visit is going to take longer which is why they want to charge more. They will take a full history from you and look more carefully around your mouth. Plus it'll take longer to remove all your tartar because it's been so long between visits.
I visited one dentist for about 5 years and was impressed that he made a big effort to look all around my tongue for abnormal lumps on the first visit… but he never did it again and I assume that was him being extra thorough on the initial visit.
My health fund picks up the bill but I think the usual fees are $250 to $300
Dentistry is a complete wild west with little transparency or way to cross compare.
I paid $180 in Brunswick for a Scale and Clean
But I originally paid $300 for the same person in another suburb at a different dentist establishment.
Hmm! That's insane. I have looked at the Groupon links posted above and see there are restrictions (like you can see specific dentists etc), not sure if they're trainees or something. The one I booked with has a lot of positive reviews and is a highly experienced dentist so I am conflicted now if I have to cancel my appointment or not. 🤔
Almost everyone can tell you a horror story about dentists. It is hard to find a good one and one that you feel comfortable with.
Scale and clean etc is not major work, so there is minimal pain and not much to go wrong. However, the examination may reveal underlying problems that will need attention, and that is where costs will escalate rapidly.
Since you don't have a regular dentist, and you have not indicated your level of comfort with dentistry, I will go against OB regulations and say that if this place has lots of positive reviews etc, then I would pay the extra. If you are happy with the work, and you are comfortable with the dentist, then if in future you need remedial work, then you have someone you have a reasonable level of trust with. The last thing you want is to be shopping around and dealing with an unknown quantity in an emergency.
I've been seeing the same dentist for the last 25 years and been a patient of this practice for 45 years. As far as I am concerned, my dentist is the best in Australia. I have no fear when I go to see him. Now of course that is partly due to the fact that dentistry has changed so much since I was a teenager and was absolutely sxxt scared of dentists for a long time after. This practice charges over the odds, but I would never go anywhere else. He looks after me, knows my financial situation, and never does anything that is unnecessary or upsells me. I do have a couple of problems that will need fixing in time, but he does what he can to maintain the status quo, and delay the inevitable for as long as possible.
Yes this is OzBargain, and we are dedicated to saving money, but sometimes, just sometimes, money is not the most important consideration.
Exactly how I feel at the moment. You've worded it a lot better. They sms-ed me early today to confirm the appointment and I said yes, will go ahead with it. As you said, I've put off seeing a dentist for a long time and $337 won't bankrupt me so I'll give them the benefit of the doubt and hope for the best. If they do a good job then I'll be a customer. Otherwise, there are a lot of dentists out there and in the future I will know what I need done and will also have an idea of what the general dental items would cost.
Yep. Like vets.
Depending on what you're doing it may make sense to travel to a different suburb. (eg Sydney, generally go west).
My dentist in Gold Coast charges $99 for scale, clean and X-ray. Cheapest dentist I found but wasn't rushed, the whole process still took 20+ mins. My previous dentists all charged $150+ for the same services.
Care to share who?
cheers!
Very reasonable price compared to some of these other rip-off merchants
I think it varies greatly depending on the socioeconomic situation in the area.
In Perth, some high end Western Suburb dentists would cost ~$400 for checkup, scale and clean and xray prior to rebate, which is where i feel your cost would be understandable.
Elsewhere the same can be had for $200. It just depends on the clientelle.
I'd also debate weather you're really getting a difference in quality between the two as well, more helping to send one dentist's children to university more than the other.Although consider yourself ahead as you haven't had to pay it on a yearly basis.
Dual pricing. One price for the rich, and another for the common folk. Hey, if they can get away with it, why not?
Probably need to charge more in wealthier suburbs to afford that ferrari, cant let your clients see you in anything less right…..
Why isn't Dental care under the Medicare umbrella?
To enrich PHI mates of the politicians.
Because they would be digging for gold and claiming it, believe me. I'm convinced that for whatever reason it was left out of the medicare system is in hindsight, a blessing.
Think root canals on decayed molars with complications to repair/longevity issues, thousands of dollars … All for it to need pulled (if you saw an endodontist). Luckily I had an endodontist that told me to not bother come seeing him, and that my dentist should have pulled the tooth and not even attempted a root canal. 2.5k for nothing … Oh and then paying for it to get pulled…so add a few hundred.
So screwed over in current system but another system would be much worse, interesting read, thanks.
If you read other comments around here on this post, it's an industry of healthcare that doesn't have a lot of oversight.
I believe the ADA & AMA needs to put more scrutiny on those working in dentistry.
Specialists (related fields) and mouth surgeons are usually no bs non time & money wasters.
@subywagon: Maybe.
There are good dentists around though, just have to sort the wheat from the chaff, but that takes money, time and personal experience.
For people who think it's a cost thing (too expensive) that will help people (if it was covered by medicare), remember many low income earners or whoever is able to access the public system for dental work, people only seem to go when they've got a painful problem.
If a few hundred bucks every 6 months, twice a year for a clean, and xrays once a year is too much of a cost burden, then I dunno what to say.
If Medicare covered dentistry, there would be more preventative maintenance, which would limit the need for those things.
Is that why the public system almost flatly refuses to do endodontic work? You might be lucky on a front tooth because it's a little simpler, but it is not routine, usually just a pull job…
The real reason for this, believe it or not, is because they know people with bad teeth are not as presentable and it affects their opportunities in life for work.
I think Medicare should cover all preventive procedures, or at least provide a reasonable rebate to it, maybe like a scale-downed version of CDBS.
It is just like covering vaccinations, pap smears, colorectal cancer screening & etc to lower the potential spending if these conditions are not discovered/prevented early.
Agree. Our health system works because not everything is covered (but the big stuff is) and is therefore, sustainable into the future - unlike, say, the UK, where virtually everything is covered for everyone, forever - and their NHS is falling apart - my wife's friend in Devon has to wait 3 weeks for a GP appointment .
It kinda is for low income earners
Because the Liberals cut services so billionaires can pay less tax.
Should be cheaper…about $150 with no insurance..with charge about $230
I'm tempted to give these guys a try, they are slowly growing, and have more offices opening.
I have seen a few recommendations on internet groups especially guys from overseas are used to relatively cheap dental care (NHS or other public health care systems)disclaimer: I have never used them and am not affiliated.
I came here to recommend this.
I think they only have a few locations outside of Sydney, so only suitable if you have one close.
It was a bit weird not calling someone to book and having to pay first, but $99 for any procedure is great and its very transparent.
For $99 I got a xray full check-up and a large filling had 0 waiting time when I was in there and got everything sent to me immediately afterward. This would have probably been $300-$400 elsewhere.The place was also very modern, playing music and felt less like a dentist.
They don't do complex procedures, however, he did tell me they can do root canals for $999.
Good to hear from somebody that's actually used it! Out if interest which one did you visit?
Eastlakes
The only issue with these guys are their customer support systems and a couple of issues with their app.
In saying that, their service is great. The clinician I saw was professional and knowledgeable and really efficient. I didn't have any waiting time, got a scan, checkup and clean and was out of the door. Five minutes later and prescribed treatments and your imaging appears on the app.
Seems about right.
$1200 for a family of 4 to visit dentist.
Swiped HCF card.
Thankyou, that's been fully covered see you in 6 months
Hell yeah you will.
Wow, I was shocked at just over $500 for me, the wife and a prep kid. Sounds like I got a bargain! (Brisbane, no extras cover).
It depends on the quality of the service and the clientelle. Its like saying a burger at Maccas is $6, compared to a burger at Grill'd for $17. Or specsavers glasses for $199, or you could get quality frames for $499 somewhere else.
Exactly how we should see healthcare; great comparison, we can do cheaper for the plebs though surely? A pair of pliers ain't that much
Seems about right to me? I went yesterday in Brisbane CBD and it came to $305 for the same thing:
012 - Periodic Oral Examination - $57
022 - Single X-ray - $45
022 - Single X-ray - $45
114 - Removal of Calculus - $148
121 - Topical application of remineralisation agent - $10All covered by health fund, but the uninsured prices seem to be close to your quote? Maybe a small charge for being a first time patient would make up the difference
Medibank currently has a promo, where 2 and 6 months waiting periods are waived. In addition, 2 free check-up per years at their members choice.
I have never understood how it actually works if someone uses an the benefit and immediately leave (say within 1 month). Does the fund then charge the full year cost or extra penalty? If it cost someone to one month payment and leave, then why does not most people do it (reason other than Medicare levy surcharge).
Why don't most people live/act like Ozbargain professionals? Why do certain stores have a ridiculously generous return policy? Same idea here.
The only reason PHI could afford to run such promos is the number of people exploiting it is relatively small. Otherwise they would have either choose not to waive these waiting periods like real insurance should, or enforce a minimal contractual period. Apparently they feel the benefits of attracting new customers outweighs any losses from abuses.
Other than that, the potential loss they suffer from this group of abusers is relatively small. You can only exploit them for purely preventive procedures (no gap) and to a small extent on relatively cheap minor dental procedures (60-90% back depending on your policy). For major procedures, you still need a full 12m waiting period which no sane PHI would ever waive. Other than that, I bet the amount PHI pay the dentist is peanuts compared to what they claim on their bills. (not in the industry so would appreciate any insider info)
Btw you don't even need to stay for 1 month, just whatever amount they charged you upfront. My latest policy lasted 1 week and I went through dental+specs+massages+chiro. If you can maintain your oral hygiene to the point of only preventive treatment is needed (which I do), then it is definitely a good deal.
And btw extra cover has nothing to do with MLS.
And finally the extra cover we have here in Australia is nowhere near real insurance, it is just a gimmick to get you spend more money on useless procedures you would not bother otherwise. If you don't like to exploit it, then just pay for whatever you need out of pocket. A real insurance policy should be offsetting risk, a lifesaver in big shit kind of situations, not trying to give you petty money back here and there on procedures you can afford anyway.
Why on earth are you getting dental X rays regularly? X rays should only ever be done as needed.
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https://ahm.com.au/health-insurance/no-gap-dental-check-ups
It is only at selected dentists