$1500 After Insurance for Root Canal - Is This Typical?

The cost of a root canal depends on what tooth. If you know the number of the tooth, you could call another dentist and see what they charge. Or if you have a dental school, you could try them but ask for a higher class ranked student. I got a quote for a root canal and it was about 1200 for a back molar

Sounds normal.

Why have insurance, you ask? While you may think it is exorbitant, at least you have dental insurance and are not paying the full $3600, right? Sounds like insurance picking up the tab to the tune of about 55-60% isn't all horrible.

Be thankful it covers half. Dental insurance isn't that great so opted not to get it. We just pay out of pocket.

Sounds high to me.... Root canals are normally about 800 and the same for crowns... That sounds expensive~

Not sure if the RC price is normal, but I've been screwed in the past by dental insurance. I was told a filling was completely covered and then suddenly owed $200. Not $1500, but it felt like it at the time. You may want a 2nd opinion on the price. Dental procedures can vary a lot!

Seriously dental insurance sucks big time. It is normal....unfortunately. Now you know why so many people are goin around with no teeth. I spent 8 grand a couple of years ago and still owe over 2 grand yet... thats with no insurance at all. Don't make fun of people without any choppers cuz you might be the next one walking around missing a front tooth. It's horrible. Dental care is so important for our health, gum disease is very bad for your heart.
Dont forget to floss while you have something TO floss.

I'd call around and ask for a price Quote from other dentists. Ball park quote that is. They obviously can't give an exact amount but I'd see what the going rate is. Your insurance company might be able to tell you the rates that they get billed for them and that is this is in the normal range.

It's usual. Dental insurance is horrible. At least they'll covered half, most won't do that much. I have to finish getting one side of my mouth plated(sp) and 4 cavities filled and I have already put off a year becasue even with insurance I have to pay a lot. Not sure why dental isn't considered important like health insurance, but it's all a monopoly anyway.

That sounds high. But depends on the insurance. You should get a 2nd opinion. My root canal on a molar after insurance was 800. Even that I thought it was high.

It really does sound high but it depends on coverage. My insurance covers 80% on the root canal and 50% on the crown so total after insurance ended up being roughly $800 with the majority going to the actual crown. There are a lot of variable to take into account in those cases. Some insurance also only cover a small amount of work. Mine only covers up to $1500 per year so a root canal and crown on 2 separate teeth would blow through that.

What it sounds like is, you don't have the greatest insurance out there but at least they are paying for nearly half of it.
What I suggest is if you can't afford the 1450 ask for a temp crown, instead of a real one...the price will drop down a lot.
If you want a comparison...crowns alone are 900 at my dentist (I currently need 2). This price in not including the procedure to put it on, or a root canal, just the crown itself.
Dental insurance is extremely tricky to understand. The biggest problem is most of us compare it to medical insurance and the 2 are totally different. All in all it's not *that bad* that they are paying half. Think about if the charge was 100 bucks...you would only be paying 50, which isn't bad. This paticular procedure costs a lot more, but you're not paying the full amount.
Your last resort would be to get the billing codes from your dentist (for the root canal/crown) and call other offices giving them this and your insurance info to get other quotes.
Hope this helps. Good Luck!

it's about right for insurance, but your dentist is on the high side. shop around.
khairete
S.

That sounds a little pricey to me. My husband had a tooth break and then crumble when they went to prep for a crown... ended up removing completely since there was nothing solid left.... he had an implant done instead. Titanium screw put into his jaw, fake tooth built and put onto the screw 4 months after the jaw healed from the surgery with the screw. All TOTAL, it was right about what you are quoting for the root canal and crown. That just seems too high to me.

Sounds about right? I had 4 teeth worked on..well one had previously been pulled (a molar), but I had a bridge put in for the 3 teeth and a root canal and crown on the front of the 4. It was $4000 after insurance. Ours pays 50%. We set as much as we can ($5000 most years but one year they said only $3000) for the medical reimbursement acct, just for these reasons. We are so used to it now and don't "miss" the money in the weekly paychecks. I always have dental work that could be done....have migranes so have alot of meds (altho now I pay no copays on any but one as all are generic)...we all wear glasses now..daughter has since she was 4..now 16..and hubby and I started needing reading glasses 2 years ago. We can use the account for any of that and it is always gone by about October for us.

Good luck! I dislike the dentist as I have an overly sensitive mouth and I am never the same after dental work..and now am told I have arthritis in my jaw. Oh happy day!

That sounds high to me... I just had a root canal myself and my "out-of-pocket" expense after my insurance is around $750.
Granted, it is still an INSANE amount of money!
Is this a dentist that you've been going to for awhile? I definitely agree with the suggestion to shop around and see what other dentists would charge... however, just be careful. You don't want to sacrifice great work just to save a little money - especially with something like a root canal.

Also, when I had mine done, since I didn't have an extra $750 lying around I applied for this thing called Care Credit - which is pretty much a credit card that you can use solely for medical/dental (and even veterinarian apparently) bills. I didn't like the idea at first but they gave me 18 months no interest so it really helped.
I believe it's a national program so I would think they'd have this available in Arizona...

Good luck :)