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Tracy Said:

Dental Insurance Question - The Real Scoop?

We Answered:

I am so glad I read this because I can definitely give you the answer you are looking for and you are right on the money! I am a dentist and I accept certain insurances and am very familiar with these plans and I can finally vent my frustration and reasons why to the world!
You are absoloutly right. No dentist (including myself) wants or will join them unless they are absoloutly depserate for patients. The fees are discounted so low, that no ethical, quality dentist would join them unless it was to help out one of their friends or a patient that they want to help specifically and are willing to take a loss on.

You see, most people think dentists make a ton of money (some do, ther is no doubt) but most people don't understand the cost involved just to run a dental practice. We are subjected to dental supply company monopolies, ridiculously high taxes, astronomical school debt and a myriad of other high cost items whichy I won't get into.

The problem with participating with insurance companies is that you have to reduce your normal fees so much, that by the time you pay for your regular operating costs, you are barely even turning a profit. This is even more true with discount plans and usually, if you have a quality dentist, they would be basically paying to do your dental work.

The only time when this isn't true is if they are using dental supplies or doing dental procedures that are subquality but legal, or just so rich that they can afford to pay to do your dentistry (or possibly so close to retirement that everything has already been paid off for them).

I personally refuse to lower my standards and quality in order to accomodate ridiculously low fees. Because ultimately, though it is much cheaper for you, you get what you pay for. There is just no way that a dentist doing half-way decent work can participate heavily with a discount plan.

That being said, your dentist is also not going to lower the fees to that plan for the same reason. You are better of to get regular insurance or just pay out of pocket. Be sure to check out the dental facility and get an overall feel for the practice. If something doesn't seem right, then go with your gut! If you get regular insurance, be sure to check all of the details and specifics, as they often try to put in hidden loopholes to avoid covering things.

Hope that helps!!!

Gregory Said:

If health insurance companies are at fault for rising costs than why are their profit margins so low?

We Answered:

Actually, the profit margin is 3% or less for many of them. People who believe that profit is the problem are delusional. Consumer demand for more and more coverage for less and less out of pocket at the time of service is largely responsible. People have become out of touch with the real cost of health care and since it costs so little at the time of service, they tend to overuse the system. Naturally, higher demand will ultimately result in higher cost. Combine that with state mandates for certain coverage levels and it's a recipe for out of control cost. The fact is that it's expensive because people over use it and because everyone who's insured is paying for other people to have Viagra, substance abuse treatment and mental health services... whether they ever need them or not. Another factor is government funded health programs. Medicaid and Medicare offer incredibly low reimbursement rates. Often times, they reimburse at less than the cost of providing the service. That loss has to be made up somewhere, and it's made up on the backs of the cash paying patients and those with private insurance.

Leslie Said:

Looking to move to Los Angeles, California to be in the Hollywood film business, can you help?

We Answered:

1) You generally need a car. Public Transportation is not incredibly user friendly in the LA area, and the LA basin is so spread out that it really really helps. If you have a meeting in Topenga Park at 1pm and then a shoot in Pomona at 4pm, a car is really going to help.

2) It won't really matter where you buy the car. You'll still have to pay to register it in LA.

3) $900 a month for a studio won't get you a low-crime area for the most part. At least not in the major LA area. You may be able to find something in a seedier area of Hollywood or Torrance, but most nicer apartments are well over $1000-$1500. Some super seedy or super distant places can be found for closer to $750, but they won't be safe or nice.

4) Also try the LA Times classified section and possibly the LA weekly. And don't forget the roommate option. There are thousands of people like you in the LA area and renting a 2BR place in the Hollywood area can sometimes be a great plan.

Good luck to you!

Darlene Said:

how much should you charge when running a cleaning business?

We Answered:

Best thing to do is ring round all the competition (anonymously) and ask them what their rates are, then very slightly undercut them. £12 hour seems reasonable to me.

Ruby Said:

How can I find the make and model from a VIN number?

We Answered:

the year of the car is the 10th character and the 8th letter or number is the Engine code.the 3rd letter will indicate the type e.g pontiac/ toyota/nissan or whatevr it maybe.