America's rotting teeth -part 2

[Bonobo]

Lack of Insurance Drives Dental Tourism

http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/nov2008/gb2008119_541944.htm

The U.S. is facing a dental crisis. Only about 50% of the population has dental insurance, compared with the 85% who have medical benefits. Medicare doesn't cover dental procedures, despite the fact that aging teeth are just like aging bodies—vulnerable and brittle. That means more and more patients will be traveling abroad to take care of their pearly whites.
The problem in the U.S. is aggravated by the fact that even people with dental insurance aren't that well covered. The vast majority of policies have a $1,500 annual cap on payouts, a level that hasn't changed since the 1970s, though premiums have been rising. That $1,500 can easily be wiped out by one complicated root canal or a crown.

BIG SAVINGS
Or, they seek a cheaper option, and that explains why certain areas of Budapest, Prague, Tijuana, and Bangkok are lined with dental clinics advertising their services and prices in foreign languages. For years dental tourism has been a thriving subset of medical tourism, as American and European patients seek affordable care for decaying teeth. Some surveys estimate that as many as 30% of the population along the Texas side of the Rio Grande cross the border into Mexico for cheaper dental services. British dental patients have long traveled to Eastern Europe for care. And in a 2008 survey, the nonprofit Healthcare Tourism International found that dental services were the most common procedures sought out by medical travelers.

The savings those patients rack up can more than compensate for their travel costs. Teeth caps that range from $750 to $1,000 in the U.S. cost $150 in Mexico. In Hungary, a top-quality crown costs $780, compared with $1,200 to $2,000 in the U.S. London-based Hungarian Dental Travel has built a brisk business referring travelers to English-speaking dentists in Hungary, because "in Britain the average cost of an implant is $3,500, but in Hungary you can get it done for $1,000," says Managing Director Christopher Hall.

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On a personal note, since I have moved to Japan, all of my teeth and my wife;s and my 3 children have been properly taken care of. The cost for about a dozen visits between us has been under $100 dollars and I am quite certain the equivalent in the US would be several thousand if not over ten thousand dollars. National insurance. They have it in Japan because they seem to understand that a strong nation must be a healthy and educated nation. They have not let the krazy kapitalists destroy the nation with their unremitting greed.

[Oregone]

1. Even with insurance, its cheaper to go to Mexico

It isn't the lack of insurance or otherwise thats the problems...its the low actuarial rates of the insurance. Hell...its basically pre-paid dentistry and you are rarely going to win with it unless your employer covers enough of the premiums. Crunch the numbers all you want.

Actuarial...its an interesting concept. One people wanted to ignore in this neato big-fucking-deal health care reform.

[lonestarnot]

2. We killed the gulf w/o consequence as yet, why should a tooth matter?

[Oregone]

3. Because bear meat it tougher than fish meat

Our eating habits will change soon

[depakid]

4. I'd rather eat smelt for a week than greasy, parasite ridden bear meat.

[flamingdem]

5. The British are not covered for dental care?? Michael Moore missed that nt

[BoWanZi]

6. I would much rather have free Dental care public option than general health care

In my little selfish world, I would so LOVE to have socialized free dental care more so than any other kind of healthcare. I can deal with finding a job and getting my own health insurance but no matter what kind of dental care you get, its still stupidly expensive. I want free dental care!!!