How dentist determine number of tooth surfaces when filling is required?
Mу Dental insurance company require mе tο pay сеrtаіn amount fοr each procedure. I hаνе tο gο fοr a tooth filling sometime thіѕ week аnd mу charge list shows various charges depending οn number οf surfaces. Fοr example fοr Resin-Based Composite – One Surface, Anterior i hаνе tο pay 17$, fοr Two Surfaces, Anterior i hаνе tο pay 23$ аnd ѕο οn…
Sο аѕ a patient hοw dο i determine myself thаt fοr hοw many surfaces dentist ѕhουld charge mе?
Call the dentist and ask how many surfaces it will be, they will have it recorded in your chart. Just tell them you need to know so that you know how much money you’ll be expected to pay. However, keep in mind that sometimes once the dentist gets in there, it may be bigger than he/she initially thought and therefore cover more surfaces so bring some extra money just in case.
BTW the most surfaces a tooth could possibly have filled is five, but is you’re getting a 5-surface filling, you’d be better off with a crown, otherwise the whole tooth would be filling material and most likely break very easily.
think of the surfaces of your teeth as a box with a lid on it. each side of the box and the front and rear is a surface as is the top or bottom of the tooth as well. some may charge for two surfaces if a side and the top are involved. pretty simple math but any errors will prob be in favor of the dentist as he is the one doing the work and making the judgement of its value.
gary
You can’t. You are not a dentist!! So really, they can rip you off if you want to. The only thing you could do, is research every type of tooth and then say…hey, wait a minute… a bicuspid only has 2 surfaces…how come you are billing me for 4!!! (for example)
That sort of thing.
Dentists can seriously rip you off. They are licensed crooks.
A better thing to do is to ask your dentist to prepare you a written report, showing each tooth that needs to be filled…how many surfaces need to be filled…and so forth…BEFORE you get the work done.