Dental coverage isn’t a given for all employees. Depending on your company and the state in which you live, dental benefits may be either optional or non-existent. Fortunately, dental coverage is affordable and can be purchased as an individual policy. Yet people who don’t have access to dental insurance through their job may find themselves unable to afford it. If you can’t get dental benefits at work, how do you save money so that you can spend on getting dental services?
It’s not an easy task when many people aren’t able to directly control the amount of money they spend monthly on rent, food, gas and other necessities. And with expenses rising every year, there are few frugal ways of saving money so that you can afford dental services if they aren’t covered by your job.
Dental Insurance 101
This insurance is a form of health insurance that pays for the treatment of dental health problems. Dental insurance policies are available to individuals, families, and employees of businesses. In the U.S., dental insurance is regulated at the state level, so benefits and coverage vary widely between states, and even between different insurance companies in a state. There are two common types of dental insurance plans:
Dental Health Maintenance Organizations (HMCOs): These are prepaid dental plans where the member pays a fixed amount every month and in return gets a fixed amount towards dental services.
Dental Blue Cross/Blue Shield Plans: These are indemnity plans, where the member pays a fixed amount towards the dental services and in return is paid the actual cost of the services.
Set a target amount for your dental savings
The first step to saving money towards dental coverage is to set a target amount. This target can be the full cost of the policy or a percentage of the cost. It’s important to remember that the amount you save should be significant enough to cover your dental expenses . A good rule of thumb is to contribute towards dental coverage until your savings account hits $1,000.
If you have existing dental coverage, you can use your existing dental savings to pay for services that aren’t covered under your plan. If you follow this rule, the first $1,000 in dental savings will be used to cover the remaining cost of dental services. Once the $1,000 has been depleted, the rest of the dental costs will come out of your pocket.
Save the most you can on your monthly expenses
A major part of saving towards dental coverage involves cutting down on your monthly expenses. It’s important to remember that the only way to save money towards dental coverage is to reduce your monthly expenses. You might be thinking, “But wait, I’m not in control of how much I spend on rent, utilities and food.” While it’s true that you can’t directly control the amount of money you spend on these necessities, you can cut down on them.
There are plenty of ways to save money, like sharing a car with a roommate, buying generic brands at the grocery store and cutting the cord on cable TV. The average person spends $1,000 per month on utilities alone. Switching to a cheaper electric company and installing LED lights in your home are two easy ways to reduce the amount of money you spend on utilities.
Commit to a specific Dental Coverage scheme
If you want to save money towards dental coverage, you have to commit to a savings scheme. Most people give up on saving money towards dental coverage because they aren’t committed to saving. They’ll save a little bit here and there without a specific goal in mind. Save the most you can every month. Deposit a fixed amount into a savings account every week. Save a certain amount of money each time you receive a paycheck. Whatever savings scheme you commit to, make sure that you stick to it. If you don’t commit to saving money, it’s unlikely that you’ll be able to save at all.
Bottom line: Dental Coverage
It can be difficult to save money towards dental coverage when you aren’t in control of how much you spend monthly on rent, utilities and food. However, there are a few ways to save money that will help you build your dental savings account. Follow these tips, and you’ll be able to save enough money so you can afford dental services.
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