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Five Decades Later, Medicare Might Cover Dental Care
ny times ^

Posted on 08/30/2021 1:37:47 PM PDT by algore

Nearly half of Americans 65 and over didn’t visit a dentist in the last year, and nearly one in five have lost all their natural teeth, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. There’s growing evidence that dental problems can worsen other health conditions that Medicare does cover.

Bernie Sanders, the Vermont independent who is the chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, has played a crucial role in advancing the measure. He recalled living as a young man in Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom, five miles from the clinic where Ms. Hayes received her care, and learning that many residents lacked access to dentists. “A child who lived nearby, his teeth were literally rotting in his mouth,” he said.

Since then, the situation in Vermont has improved. Community health centers serve about a quarter of the state’s population. The state’s Medicaid program pays for preventive care and for up to $1,000 a year in other treatment for children and poor adults. But it does not pay for dentures, which can run into the thousands of dollars. Nationwide, around half of Americans 65 and older lack any source of dental insurance.

With so many uninsured older patients, dentists like Dr. Adrienne Rulon, who treated Ms. Hayes, practice triage. Certain teeth — like the eye teeth and first molars — are more important to save. Filling a cavity in one tooth is less expensive than a root canal in another. Sometimes, patients will come in for an exam, learn about more expensive problems, then disappear for months while they save money for the procedure. “People are having to pick and choose,” she said. “It’s a huge untreated population

(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...


TOPICS: Government; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: dental; medicare; wboopi
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To: lilypad

They don’t pay enough for anything other than minor stuff like cleaning etc and are capped at less than $1000 per year - most at $700


41 posted on 08/30/2021 2:32:22 PM PDT by PIF (They came for me and mine ... now its your turn)
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To: lilypad

Wife and I are insured to death it seems like, and yet, almost nothing is covered. We both have Medicare, and Blue Cross supplemental, and dental, and eye. Basically all the dental and eye part does is allow you to make payments in advance on some procedures. We still have to pay for glasses, and the dental doesn’t pay for implants and other procedures. Neither Medicare or Blue Cross would cover the $7k for hearing aids, but if your hearing is bad enough, they will pay for cochlear implants.


42 posted on 08/30/2021 2:38:24 PM PDT by Quickgun (I got here kicking,screaming and covered in someone else's blood. I can go out that way if I have to)
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To: algore

In the budget plan they are also lowering the eligibility age to 60 for Medicare


43 posted on 08/30/2021 2:38:27 PM PDT by italianquaker
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To: qam1

my x-wife sent one of my kids to the dentist, I found out 1 hour before his appointment. I told him “do not let them drill your teeth no mater what, because if they do you will have a cavity for sure”

Sure enough the said he had a cavity and insisted on drilling.

I know this crazy really old dentist, seriously he is mad as a hatter from mercury poisoning or something, but at least I trust him. he looked at the kids xrays and said “what the hell are they talking about? there is no cavity that I can see”

A few years later another kid really did have a cavity, and he got super happy when I asked him to fill it with gold. (and it cost me the same as whatever superglue and mercury crap they use now days)


44 posted on 08/30/2021 2:41:02 PM PDT by algore ( )
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To: freepertoo

As a brand new Medicare recipient, I’m glad!

Bad news is most dentists do not take Medicare and many insurance plans - check what plans your dentist takes, as they change frequently.

Crank-em-outs, like Aspen Dental in Wisconsin, do take some Medicare advantage and some dental savings plans.

Dental savings plans are the cheapest way to go and they cover almost everything and are not limited like most Insurance plans - the trick is to find a dentist that takes your plan ; many savings plans take effect on the same day, unlike insurance plans which often have a many-month waiting period before you can use them.


45 posted on 08/30/2021 2:41:04 PM PDT by PIF (They came for me and mine ... now its your turn)
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To: chuck allen
Will I live longer with that or do I have to hard string floss?

I don't know. I've been out of the benefits business for many years now, but the flossing part is what our providers told us. My guess is that if the water flossing, along with regular dental cleanings removes plaque, you are in good shape.

46 posted on 08/30/2021 2:43:38 PM PDT by FatherofFive (We support Trump. Not the GOP)
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To: algore

Medicare won’t even be around in 10 years so what’s the point?


47 posted on 08/30/2021 2:44:25 PM PDT by unixfox (Abolish Slavery, Repeal the 16th Amendment)
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To: PGR88

Ads non stop for implants ...


48 posted on 08/30/2021 2:47:19 PM PDT by gloryblaze
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To: BushCountry

Probably about a half a million. 7% interest will double the principal every ten years. 10% interest doubles every seven years.


49 posted on 08/30/2021 2:49:10 PM PDT by crusty old prospector
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To: TexasGator

I assume you are a taxpayer or have been. Are you getting your money’s worth?


50 posted on 08/30/2021 2:50:59 PM PDT by dblshot
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To: TexasGator

I assume you are a taxpayer or have been. Are you getting your money’s worth?


51 posted on 08/30/2021 2:51:09 PM PDT by dblshot
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To: chuck allen

LOL! You probably live longer by just ot swallowing all that crap ypu flushing out now!


52 posted on 08/30/2021 2:52:08 PM PDT by Quickgun (I got here kicking,screaming and covered in someone else's blood. I can go out that way if I have to)
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To: BushCountry
Imagine how much my Social Security would be worth now if it could have collected 5-6% interest all these years.

I know what percentage of my paycheck went to 401k and what percentage went to SS. My IRA today would be triple it's size and the government wouldn't be accusing me of coming hat in hand each month for handouts.

53 posted on 08/30/2021 2:55:43 PM PDT by Starstruck ( Since I'm old I don't whether I'm senile or brilliant. Or happily both.)
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To: freepertoo

GREAT I am 71, just had all my rotten teeth pulled and getting false ones. Way too late.


54 posted on 08/30/2021 2:56:04 PM PDT by oldasrocks
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To: mewzilla

You can purchase a supplemental plan for $28 per month that covers two annual cleanings, annual xrays and a few more things, but yeah, the dentists who actually take this insurance suck. WE spent two years trying to find one that wasn’t associated with Aspen or Delta or out to scare you into procedures that weren’t covered.
The same plan also covers some vision expenses and pays a good bit toward a decent hearing aid, so we will keep it.


55 posted on 08/30/2021 3:07:32 PM PDT by Wiser now (Socialism does not eliminate poverty, it guarantees it.)
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To: freepertoo

Yes you are required to take it, including part D, OR you will be fined monthly for the rest of your life. I’m serious. It can cost up to $20 per month, and most people don’t know that provision is there.


56 posted on 08/30/2021 3:16:30 PM PDT by Wiser now (Socialism does not eliminate poverty, it guarantees it.)
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To: mewzilla

preventive


57 posted on 08/30/2021 3:23:28 PM PDT by smalltownslick (a)
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To: nascarnation

It’s not free. Not only do you pay your entire working live with Medicare taxes, but you pay a monthly premium and a deductible and because it’s so crappy, you need a secondary. So no it is far from free.


58 posted on 08/30/2021 3:23:31 PM PDT by napscoordinator (Trump/Hunter, jr for President/Vice President 2016 )
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To: mewzilla

Finally, the dentist are going to get the same screwing that the medical doctors get. Is Medicare going to pay $45,000 for a full mouth restoration?The dentist will just shift the cost to the fee for service patients.


59 posted on 08/30/2021 3:43:15 PM PDT by Babba Gi (Take Care Of Your Teeth!)
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To: qam1; algore

You guys sound like Anti Dentites. #;^)


60 posted on 08/30/2021 3:50:11 PM PDT by Kickass Conservative (Trump - Make America Great Again / Xiden - Make America Grovel Again...)
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