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mfcorey1

(11,001 posts) Sat Sep 5, 2015, 02:07 PM Sep 2015

Your dentist may be ripping you off. Here are 7 tips to help you avoid it.

There's an invisible problem in dentistry: some dentists using "creative diagnosis" to perform unnecessary work in the interest of making extra money.

There isn't hard data on how often this occurs, but it's clear that it's a big issue — as highlighted by an op-ed by a dentist in American Dental Association News. Due to a few different factors — a lack of oversight, rising debt incurred during dental school, and the rise of quota-driven corporate dental chains — there's a decent chance that you might visit a dentist who's making decisions based on profit, not the work you really need.

Last year, I interviewed eight dentists for tips on how to avoid this sort of thing. Here are some highlights.

http://www.msn.com/en-us/health/medical/your-dentist-may-be-ripping-you-off-here-are-7-tips-to-help-you-avoid-it/ar-BB94zeZ

6 replies

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Your dentist may be ripping you off. Here are 7 tips to help you avoid it. (Original Post) mfcorey1 Sep 2015 OP

Funny, ADA no mention of cheap prosthetics made in China. More rip off profits for DDS's. Mika Sep 2015 #1

Helpful tips. mnhtnbb Sep 2015 #2

Modern (and safer) radiographs are digital now. Mika Sep 2015 #5

Our family dentist recently saw my son, who was 18 at the time, for a simple checkup and cleaning-- TwilightGardener Sep 2015 #3

Be in the market for a DDS who seeks to prevent carries and minimize breakdown. Mika Sep 2015 #6

Tip number 8 Android3.14 Sep 2015 #4

Mika

(17,751 posts)

1. Funny, ADA no mention of cheap prosthetics made in China. More rip off profits for DDS's.

Reply to mfcorey1 (Original post)

Sat Sep 5, 2015, 02:17 PM

Sep 2015

"Pretty much the whole dental profession has been wiped out by greed.
It is now "just business" ... nothing personal."
~ Mika Haan - DDS

mnhtnbb

(31,395 posts)

2. Helpful tips.

Reply to mfcorey1 (Original post)

Sat Sep 5, 2015, 02:20 PM

Sep 2015

My dentist retired last year and I wasn't happy with the new dentist to whom I was referred.
I'm going to get the x-rays the new dentist took and take them to someone else for my next routine visit.

Mika

(17,751 posts)

5. Modern (and safer) radiographs are digital now.

Reply to mnhtnbb (Reply #2)

Sat Sep 5, 2015, 03:48 PM

Sep 2015

You can have them put your pics on a USB thumb drive, these days.

TwilightGardener

(46,416 posts)

3. Our family dentist recently saw my son, who was 18 at the time, for a simple checkup and cleaning--

Reply to mfcorey1 (Original post)

Sat Sep 5, 2015, 02:20 PM

Sep 2015

he walked out with an agreement to have some sort of sealer/filler thing done to his molars that would fill his crevices (note, not cavities--he didn't actually have any of those--CREVICES that "might" turn into cavities!) to the tune of $1300. They even set up a sample monthly payment schedule for him. Well, he's had sealers applied in the past. They also knew he and my family are self-pay and don't have dental insurance. Fucking scam, we made him cancel that bullshit, so we're in the market for a dentist who will do three things: check, clean, and fill cavities/fix problems that actually exist--and not pressure us to pay for bullshit moneymakers. BTW, on edit to continue my rant: VETERINARIANS: I am not paying hundreds of dollars a pop every few years to have dental work done on my dogs and cats when I can barely afford it for my human family. Stop pushing that shit on me. Thank you.

Mika

(17,751 posts)

6. Be in the market for a DDS who seeks to prevent carries and minimize breakdown.

Reply to TwilightGardener (Reply #3)

Sat Sep 5, 2015, 03:51 PM

Sep 2015

Some are kooks. Some aren't ...

http://holisticdental.org/find-a-holistic-dentist

Android3.14

(5,402 posts)

4. Tip number 8

Reply to mfcorey1 (Original post)

Sat Sep 5, 2015, 02:31 PM

Sep 2015

Brush and floss regularly.

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