need help. any advice?

Hi,

I hope someone can help me with my question. I recently went to a dentist's office advertising low fees for an initial exam, cleaning and X-rays for new patients. At the end of the exam, I was told that I need to have quite a few fillings and was presented with a dental treatment plan. Not realizing the full extent of the plan (originally I was only shown a portion of the future visits and their cost) I signed, agreeing to be treated. I paid in full the amount for my initial visit, which didn't turn out to be very cheap after all. I did not schedule any further appointments upon leaving, but I requested clarification about the extent of the proposed treatment. Only then was I presented with the remaining visits, which added up for a new total of more than $2000.00. I received a phone call the next day from the office manager reminding me to schedule my next appointment ASAP. I have not done it yet and I would like to terminate my agreement, but I signed it. Does my signature oblige me to pay any amounts if no future appointments were ever scheduled and no services were rendered?
What would be the best way for me to terminate this treatment plan without incurring any more cost? I also noticed the treatment plan (which includes a total of 5 visits), lists all the visits as happening on the same day (the day of my original exam), even though they were never scheduled. I only got X-rays, cleaning, exam, and an oral exam and I paid for those services provided (I have a separate statement of services rendered for that day) If anyone can give me some advice, it would be greatly appreciated.

I presume that you are in USA as that happens a lot here. Every contract is different in every state but in general no you are done. It is an error to go to some health car practioneer on some deal where the doctor looses money on the appointment because they will figure out how to make uo for the loss leader.

NEVER sign anything unless you FULLY understand what you are signing....

That being said... if you paid for the initial FIRST visit in full and have not scheduled any further treatments I think you should be fine.

If you are like me and paid a "down payment" of the entire treatment process you are entitled to pay whether you schedule appts or not.

My whole entire (8-10 month treatment plan) cost me 40k... I signed and paid 10% down. I'm entitled to pay monthly whether I go for treatment during that month or not.

I would double check what exactly it is you signed and what exactly it is you paid for.

Thank you for your replies. My signature appears on a sheet of paper titled "Treatment Case." The cost/estimate on the sheet of paper with my signature is a little over $900, which includes the initial exam (around $325). However, before leaving, I asked for a print-out of the cost of the entire treatment, and that's where the $2000 appears. The second print-out is a copy of the first with some added procedures to it, but it does not contain my signature. I was not asked to pay a down-payment and in the policies it says that you pay on the day of services rendered. So far the only services rendered ($325) were during the initial exam and I wasn't asked to pay anything beyond that. I am hoping I can sort this out as soon as possible. The documents do not use the word "contract." They also mention that the fees listed are only valid for 30 days.

I would say that you are fine then. But I would call them and tell them you do not wish to schedule any further appointments and to cancel that "estimate". It's not what you expected to pay or expected to be done. Make something up....

I'm hoping what you DID sign was just the initial exam and what was done and what you had paid.

Let us know how you go.

$325 doesn't seem all that cheap for an initial exam either....so much for it being heavily discounted.
In UK people tend to pay for treatment at the end of each appointment as it falls due. That seems the fairest way to me so you can change your mind if the dentist does not live up to your expectations. I have never been asked to sign anything re finance in 3 countries regarding dental treatment. It is all just verbal.
An endodontist sent me written info about procedures but nothing re payment etc etc or my committing to it and nothing for me to sign and return.

It seems a bad idea to me to pay for treatment upfront. You need to reserve the right to not return and not be out of pocket as a result. The dentist needs to earn your trust.

It looks like you will be ok in this instance so that is good to hear. Consumer protection laws must cross over with dentistry to some extent I would have thought. UK law is very pro the consumer though.

Even if what you did sign, was by law, some sort of contract, it would have been you paying money in exchange for a service, every contract has two sides agreeing to do something. That would be the contract terms- So no service - no money due.........

I had one dentist who wanted me to sign and then say signing meant I paid upfront, (cash balance due at start of treatment) for all the services on the treatment plan- I walked away....he was in financial trouble.....

rp

While I agree that signing a "contract" while possibly being "under duress" and when not being fully informed as to what you're agreeing to is NOT good...I'm curious as to what you were quoted a "discount" price for? What work was involved? Most of the super-heros here could tell you if it sounds like BS stuff to avoid, or a legit quote for needed work. Maybe let us know the details?
Either way...good job and congrats for making a call and getting a check-up.

mghstl said:

While I agree that signing a "contract" while possibly being "under duress" and when not being fully informed as to what you're agreeing to is NOT good...I'm curious as to what you were quoted a "discount" price for? What work was involved? Most of the super-heros here could tell you if it sounds like BS stuff to avoid, or a legit quote for needed work. Maybe let us know the details?
Either way...good job and congrats for making a call and getting a check-up.

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The initial advertising was for a $59 exam - including X-rays, cleaning and exam. The $326 I paid that day was broken down into $40 for X-rays (bite wings and panoramic), S199 for deep scaling/root planing, $37 for an antibiotic treatment for a 6 mm pocket they found (I don't think they lied about this, as my previous dentist in another state had mentioned it), $50 fluoride treatment. I guess the $59 is valid only if there are no periodontal issues. I had calculus deposit needed to get cleaned so I agreed to all these treatments (including the antibiotic and the fluoride) for that specific day only. As I was in the dental chair the Dr. mentioned 3-4 fillings and started explaining where in the mouth he would start. Then the hygienist said that it was looking like I'll need 5-6 fillings done. By the time I was done with the appointment and I requested a summary of the entire treatment plan, it had 10 fillings listed on it spread over a total of 4-5 more visits. Strangely, when they asked me to sign before they started the deep cleaning, they only showed me the procedures for that day plus one more planned visit (where the Doc would start at). However, this was not the complete treatment plan, which I only saw after I had signed the first page. The next printout was identical, except it had 10 fillings listed, rather than the 3-4 they originally showed me. It happened so fast, I panicked over the fact that my signature was on a sheet of paper which turns out proposed treatment (in its finalized version) for $2000. But above the signature it says that the patient pays for services the day they are performed. I called today and told them I won't be going ahead with any further treatment and I won't be scheduling follow-up appointments. I requested my X-rays, which they emailed to me. I asked them to make sure I have paid for everything and that nothing is owed. They confirmed and it seems I am off the hook. I am glad that I didn't sign anything requiring an up-front amount or percentage of the full treatment amount, etc. I learned my lesson - never fall for the discounted prices, and always ask for reputable dentists. Thank you all for contributing to this thread.

so in other words.... if your teeth are pristine you pay $59 for them to look in your mouth.

When you agreed to have the work done, did they say.... "it'll cost you more than $59"... ? If they didn't... you got screwed.

45andAfraid said:

so in other words.... if your teeth are pristine you pay $59 for them to look in your mouth.

When you agreed to have the work done, did they say.... "it'll cost you more than $59"... ? If they didn't... you got screwed.

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Yes, they did tell me that it would be $326 for that day, which I agreed to. While I knew it was a bit excessive (due to the deep scaling), I thought it would be ok since my insurance will reimburse me for about half of it. If I went elsewhere a cleaning would cost between $80-$120, and then when you add the cost of the X-rays, I could have easily paid $200-250 for this elsewhere. You are correct to assume that had I researched more I would have probably saved money. I needed to get my teeth cleaned by the end of the year to use by insurance benefits, so even though I knew this was a bit on the high side, I agreed to it. My main problem was that I didn't want to go back for any future appointments and I wasn't sure whether somehow I was obligated to follow up on that treatment plan they presented me with. I have my X-rays now and I will be consulting with a different dentist to see whether I need any cavities. I only have 2 cavities in my mouth and I was very suspicious when I saw that they estimated that I need 10 fillings. It is true that I haven't had a thorough exam in the last year (other than cleanings and checking for pockets for periodontal issues), however I sincerely doubt that I need 10 fillings all of a sudden. Like I said, I will be looking for a second opinion on this.

Ok good.... and yes I think a second opinion is in order.

good job otherwise!

S199 for deep scaling/root planing

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I seriously doubt you had a scaling and root planing, that prodedure is usually done and billed for by quadrant and most of the time, local or topical anesthesia is given becuase it's pretty uncomfortable, so the whole mouth is rarely done all at once. I paiid $210 per quadrant, which is typical.

Maybe for you they they did just a few teeth with srp and the rest just cleaned? or you may have had a periodontal maintanence visit, which is a little more thorough than a prophy clean.

Here's the diffenrence in how my dental insurance pays, check your statement for billing codes. .

D1110 prophy clean - most inusrance cover 100%
D4910 periodontal maintanance - insurance covers a portion used after some type of perio treatment like srp
D4341, scaling and root planing- most insurance will only cover every two to three years- so I'd double check exactly what they did, if you run into issues and need "another" scaling and root planing you may be paying more out of pocket.

rp

I very much doubt you need 10 fillings. Remember that 5 dentists in a room will all come up with different treatment plans for the same patient, the point being that clinical judgement differs. Unfortunately the legitimate clinical differences re when to treat, how to treat and when to monitor are abused by scam artists to do unnecessary fillings/treatment.
Intra-oral cameras can allow them to convince you you have issues that a dentist without the magnification wouldn't even consider. This is a disservice to you even if you can afford it since every time you drill into a tooth, you insult the nerve and each tooth only has so many lives before it needs a root canal.

Think you had a lucky escape.

RP said:

I seriously doubt you had a scaling and root planing, that prodedure is usually done and billed for by quadrant and most of the time, local or topical anesthesia is given becuase it's pretty uncomfortable, so the whole mouth is rarely done all at once. I paiid $210 per quadrant, which is typical.

Maybe for you they they did just a few teeth with srp and the rest just cleaned? or you may have had a periodontal maintanence visit, which is a little more thorough than a prophy clean.

Here's the diffenrence in how my dental insurance pays, check your statement for billing codes. .

D1110 prophy clean - most inusrance cover 100%
D4910 periodontal maintanance - insurance covers a portion used after some type of perio treatment like srp
D4341, scaling and root planing- most insurance will only cover every two to three years- so I'd double check exactly what they did, if you run into issues and need "another" scaling and root planing you may be paying more out of pocket.

rp

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Yes you are correct. I had scaling/root planing done on only a few teeth, the rest of the mouth was a regular cleaning. They applied a numbing gel, so I didn't feel anything. As far as the insurance, I will find out how much it will cover. You are probably wright about the portions and at this point, even though I might have paid too much, I am happy to have gotten out of being obligated to continue treatment further. I am told by my employer, that on Jan. 1st a new calendar year allows me to use the insurance benefits anew, if that makes sense. So I should still be entitled to a cleaning next year.

regular cleanings yes, but the scaling and root planing is limited to every few years, you may also be entitled to two periodontal maintenance visits as well.

the fact that they didn't try and upsale you on a full mouth srp says something. Any more our readers say it seems to be the routine when someone misses a few cleanings, even for normal pocket depths.

My husband had full srp three years ago and just saw his hygineist who said, oh it's been three years time for another one (full mouth), without measuring pockets this round. He has some deeper pockets around molars but that's it- I told him to beware.