If you have dental insurance, there is a good chance you are sitting on benefits you have already paid for through your premiums or your paycheck. And unless you use them, most of those benefits disappear at the end of the year.
How "Use It or Lose It" Works With Dental Insurance
Most dental plans include an annual maximum, which is the most the plan will pay toward your care in a plan year. Common maximums run from about $1,000 to $2,000, though yours may differ. When the plan year ends, that maximum resets to zero and the unused amount typically does not roll over.
The same goes for your deductible. If you have met it this year, the progress starts over in the new year. Waiting means paying a deductible again for care you could have received while your benefits were already unlocked.
Why Booking Early Matters
The last two weeks of December are one of the busiest times of year for dental offices. Holiday schedules, school breaks, and a rush of patients with the same idea all compete for limited openings. A few reasons not to wait until the final days:
- Appointments fill up quickly, especially evenings and Saturdays
- Treatment like crowns can need more than one visit
- Insurance verification and pre-authorizations for larger treatment can take time
- Treatment started now can often be finished before the year ends
The Easiest Ways to Use Your Benefits
1. Schedule your exam, cleaning, and X-rays
Preventive care is usually covered at a high percentage by most plans, so it is the simplest way to put your benefits to work. If you have not been in for six months or more, this is the time.
2. Take care of treatment you have been putting off
A filling that has been on your treatment plan since spring, or a crown your dentist recommended, is much easier to schedule now. Small problems that go untreated tend to grow into larger, more expensive ones.
3. Consider splitting larger treatment across two plan years
If you need more work than your annual maximum covers, it can make sense to complete part of the treatment before December 31 and the rest after January 1. That way you can use two years of benefits instead of one. Our team can map out a plan that fits your coverage.
4. Use remaining FSA funds
If you have a flexible spending account (FSA), those funds often have their own deadline, and some plans allow only a limited carryover or grace period. Dental care is an eligible expense, so check your balance before the year ends. HSA funds, by comparison, generally stay with you from year to year.
What If You Have Medicare Advantage or Medicaid?
Medicare Advantage plans with dental benefits typically work on a calendar-year basis as well, and the Annual Enrollment Period (October 15 through December 7) is when you can compare plans for next year. Medicaid and Healthy Michigan Plan dental coverage works differently from commercial insurance, so ask our team to check what your specific plan includes.
What If You Don't Have Insurance?
You are not left out. Our $79 New Patient Special is available for patients without dental insurance, and we offer 0% financing through CareCredit and Cherry Financing. If you do have dental insurance, we always bill your plan first.
Book Before the Year-End Rush
Benefits you do not use are benefits you lose. Same-day appointments are available at all five of our offices, and our team accepts most dental insurance plans, including Delta Dental, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Cigna, Aetna, MetLife, Medicaid, Medicare, and many more.