Non-Routine Dental Care

Non-routine dental care refers to dental procedures that are not considered preventive or routine in nature. These procedures are typically more complex and may require specialized skills or equipment. Examples of non-routine dental care include root canals, oral surgery, dentures, and crowns.

Key features of non-routine dental care coverage include:

• Coverage for more complex and specialized dental procedures

• Typically subject to a deductible and coinsurance

• Coverage limits may apply

• Often requires pre-authorization from the insurer

• May have waiting periods for coverage to begin

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Vision is the most commonly offered ancillary benefit in employer-sponsored plans — 89% of employers offer it nationally, higher than dental, higher than life insurance, and higher than any voluntary benefit. And yet vision is also one of the most underfunded benefits in the market.
Dental benefits are not your largest cost center. For most employers, dental represents a fraction of what medical costs per covered employee annually. But dental is one of the highest visibility benefits in your package: employees use it, notice it, and talk about it. When it’s good, it builds goodwill. When it’s inadequate (low maximums, no orthodontia, zero employer contribution) it registers as a signal that the employer isn’t invested in the total package.
How an employer funds its health plan sits quietly in the background of every benefits decision. Most CHROs and CFOs know their premium cost. Fewer understand the mechanics of how their plan is actually structured: who holds the risk, who administers the claims, how costs flow, and what flexibility, if any, they have to change any of it.