My Father in-law is a Dentist, and my wife works for him. I’m not sure how it differs in other states but here in Washington the insurance companies heavily dictate how much the Dentist can charge for the different services. What’s been happening to him, is his cost of supplies have been going up each year taking the biggest jump this last year, yet Washington Dental Service one of the biggest insurers will not allow him to raise his prices, so the increased overhead has to come out of the office portion of the fee. Many offices have had to let employees go to keep in business. The office across the hall from his had to lay off half the girls. My Father in-law avoided this by cutting down the girls hours and making them rotate, and now he does his own Hygienist work instead of hiring one to come in.
This fixed insurance price makes it difficult to over charge, but some unethical Dentist may talk the patient into a $700 Crown when a 2 surface $112 Amalgam would have worked fine. Like you should for a mechanic, do the same for a Dentist. When you find an honest one, stick with him.
I typically use used parts on my vehicles. Know where I can find a second hand crown?