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I am a Canadian and I have traveled to Mexico for dental care multiple times. It worked out way cheaper cheaper, and I got some nice vacations out of it. I have

by r-s 8y ago

I am a Canadian and I have traveled to Mexico for dental care multiple times. It worked out way cheaper cheaper, and I got some nice vacations out of it. I have heard horror stories but my experience has been great. For those unaware, Canadians do not have universal dental care. It can be very expensive here, when the Canadian dollar was stronger I knew people traveling to the USA.

shados 8y ago
I lost a few teeth because of lack of dental insurance in Canada. Some companies provide it as a benefit, but they're far and few in between. It's not too surprising, either: since you have universal healthcare, a lot more companies don't provide insurance (which would be complementary). In the US, it's definitely not the norm to have dental insurance, but it is to have insurance as a benefit, at which point dental is just an add-on for companies to provide (I'm obviously oversimplifying). I've never worked for a company in the US that didn't provide dental (even though I know it is common-ish), but in Canada I only worked for a few in the same field who did provide it.
- kazinator 8y ago
  Extended insurance is not free; your employer has to pay that, and it comes out of your salary, effectively. "Insurance" for recurring items like dental cleanings, massages and whatnot isn't "insurance" in the regular sense of the word; it is pure overhead. It's gamed so that the insurance company makes money, otherwise why would they do this. You pay them $5 so they give you back $4 and send you to the dentist, massage, or whatever. There are yearly limits, and you cannot get any left over cash back that you have not used! Since I started contracting, I put away 300-something dollars each month into a health insurance bank account, and then I go to the darned dentist as I would under extended health insurance. Whatever is left over in that account is mine. I have a basic emergency insurance for 300-something per year, that doesn't cover any routine, recurring services. It will cover emergency dental, like having teeth broken in an accident. Anyone who doesn't have coverage, but otherwise has a good job, yet doesn't go to the dentist because of "I don't have coverage" is purely a victim of psychology, not of any actual economic circumstances.
  - shados 8y ago
    > Extended insurance is not free; your employer has to pay that Maybe, except now I make more money than any company that doesn't have such insurance would offer me, AND I have the insurance. So it's all win. My employer didn't have an option for "if you don't take the dental insurance we'll give you more money".
- r-s 8y ago
  With the exception of working at a University with no coverage, everywhere I have worked (before I started consulting) provided dental coverage. However it was often $1500-2000 per year max which is very easy to use up.
pkaye 8y ago
So how much would a regular cleaning and filling in a cavity cost in Canada without insurance?
- r-s 8y ago
  It depends. In Alberta they have a "Fee guide" which is what people with insurance will get reimbursed for. Some dentists follow the guide, some do not. It's frustrating because they do not like to tell you the price until its over. Last time I was at dentist here was x-rays + cleaning and it was around $400. I had a root canal which was $1200 and a crown made which was around $2200.
  - pkaye 8y ago
    In the US generally the x-ray and cleaning is well covered if you have insurance. However as move towards the complicated procedures, the costs do go up.

by r-s 8y ago

shados 8y ago

I lost a few teeth because of lack of dental insurance in Canada. Some companies provide it as a benefit, but they're far and few in between. It's not too surprising, either: since you have universal healthcare, a lot more companies don't provide insurance (which would be complementary). In the US, it's definitely not the norm to have dental insurance, but it is to have insurance as a benefit, at which point dental is just an add-on for companies to provide (I'm obviously oversimplifying). I've never worked for a company in the US that didn't provide dental (even though I know it is common-ish), but in Canada I only worked for a few in the same field who did provide it.

kazinator 8y ago
Extended insurance is not free; your employer has to pay that, and it comes out of your salary, effectively. "Insurance" for recurring items like dental cleanings, massages and whatnot isn't "insurance" in the regular sense of the word; it is pure overhead. It's gamed so that the insurance company makes money, otherwise why would they do this. You pay them $5 so they give you back $4 and send you to the dentist, massage, or whatever. There are yearly limits, and you cannot get any left over cash back that you have not used! Since I started contracting, I put away 300-something dollars each month into a health insurance bank account, and then I go to the darned dentist as I would under extended health insurance. Whatever is left over in that account is mine. I have a basic emergency insurance for 300-something per year, that doesn't cover any routine, recurring services. It will cover emergency dental, like having teeth broken in an accident. Anyone who doesn't have coverage, but otherwise has a good job, yet doesn't go to the dentist because of "I don't have coverage" is purely a victim of psychology, not of any actual economic circumstances.
- shados 8y ago
  > Extended insurance is not free; your employer has to pay that Maybe, except now I make more money than any company that doesn't have such insurance would offer me, AND I have the insurance. So it's all win. My employer didn't have an option for "if you don't take the dental insurance we'll give you more money".
r-s 8y ago
With the exception of working at a University with no coverage, everywhere I have worked (before I started consulting) provided dental coverage. However it was often $1500-2000 per year max which is very easy to use up.

pkaye 8y ago

So how much would a regular cleaning and filling in a cavity cost in Canada without insurance?

r-s 8y ago
It depends. In Alberta they have a "Fee guide" which is what people with insurance will get reimbursed for. Some dentists follow the guide, some do not. It's frustrating because they do not like to tell you the price until its over. Last time I was at dentist here was x-rays + cleaning and it was around $400. I had a root canal which was $1200 and a crown made which was around $2200.
- pkaye 8y ago
  In the US generally the x-ray and cleaning is well covered if you have insurance. However as move towards the complicated procedures, the costs do go up.