Ryan recently went to a clinic operated by Western Dental Centers, a franchise that operates in California, Arizona and Nevada, and now he regrets that decision. He writes that first he was forced to endure $800 worth of upsells while he was stuck in the chair, even though he was just going in for a cleaning. What happened with billing, though, was worse and may lead to lasting credit issues. [More]
dentists
Save Money On Dental Care: Go To Mexico
By 7.7.10
It costs a lot of money to go to the dentist. And with many Americans lacking dental coverage, getting your teeth taken care of is often cost-prohibitive. But a handful of entrepreneurial dentists in Mexico have stepped up to the plate, offering discount dentistry to a growing U.S. customer base. [More]
My Dental Bill Was Sent To Collections By Mistake – Who Do I Pay Now?
By 5.20.10
S. writes that in 2008, she owed a lot of money–about $8,000–to her dentist. She worked out a payment plan with the office, and asked them to auto-bill her credit card every month. They frequently forgot to bill her, but she wasn’t too concerned about the situation. At least, until a debt collector called her, saying that the dentist had sold her balance to them. The dentist’s office claims that this is a mistake. Now both entities want S.’s money, and she’s not sure who she should pay. [More]
Use Doctor Finder To Prescreen Your Doctor
By 5.11.10
If you’re like most people, you pick a new doctor by going through an approved list provided by your insurer and selecting someone nearby. Doctor Finder from insiderpages.com hopes to make the process less random by providing reviews for doctors and dentists. You can search by zip code, then narrow down results by your insurer, distance, gender, specialty, language, and experience. [More]
Customer Breaks Tooth On Godiva Sweet, Godiva Sends Gift
By 2.10.10
Carla is pretty angry at Godiva because the chocolatier won’t take her complaint seriously. She says she cracked both a porcelain veneer and the tooth underneath on a chocolate covered pretzel last October, and Godiva has told her, “We sent you an apology gift, what more do you want?” [More]
Crest Pro-Health Mouthwash Stain Your Teeth Brown? Crest Pays For Your Cleaning
By 3.18.08
Here’s relief for users of Crest Pro-Health Mouthwash finding that the product stains their teeth brown and destroys their sense of taste. Jeremy writes:
I had that happen to me and I went to my dentist to have them cleaned. Since I had gone only a month after my last cleaning (1 free per 6 months) I had to pay. I emailed Crest about it and they said they would pay for it.
So if Crest makes your mouth look like you’ve been chewing tobacco sine you were 13, and your insurance won’t cover the cleaning, email them via this webform or call 1-800-285-9139 and see if Crest will pay for your teeth cleaning. No word on whether they’ll be helping customers recover their ability to taste anything.
Lead Found In Dental Appliance
By 2.29.08
Finally! It’s been so long since we’ve posted about anything tainted with lead that we were starting to wonder if all the world’s trade problems had been resolved—but now comes a new study that found 210 parts per million (ppm) of lead in the porcelain veneer of a dental crown ordered from China. That’s a lot less than the CPSC’s current 600 ppm threshold, but a lot more than the international standard of only 90 ppm. The good news is it’s highly unlikely developing children will need a mouth full of crowns and bridges. The bad news is it’s yet another example of how hazardous material can slip undiscovered into the marketplace—and your mouth.
Americans Saving Money By Getting Dental Work In Mexico
By 2.6.08
Americans already save money by purchasing prescription drugs from Canada and getting plastic surgery in South America.
Dancing Dentist Nearly Blinds Patient
By 11.14.07
A dentist, Dr. Trusty, was drilling on a patient and dancing to the tune “Car Wash” on the radio, when the drill bit snapped off and got caught near her eye. The doctor then tried to use a metal hook to get it out but only drove it further into the sinus and bone, according to the lawsuit. Trusty told the patient that she would probably sneeze the bit out. Doctors later said that if she had, she would have likely become blind in one eye. The patient is now suing Dr. Trusty for $600,000 in medical expenses, pain, and suffering.
Blogobitchin!
By 7.18.06
• When your MacBook is cooking, Apple prefers you sizzle blind. [Tuaw] “MacBook Pro heat problem heats up”
