I was waiting at the hair salon the other day, and I picked up a magazine with the simple headline ‘How to Save Money on Dental Bills’. Of course, I had to read the article. I am glad I did as it reinforces the things that we talk about all day long to our patients.
When times are tough, we look to tighten our budgets, and sometimes skipping a dental visit can be an ‘easy out’. But in the end, it will take more time and money to get back to a healthy mouth after the damage is done. We now know that there is direct correlation between gum disease and heart disease, stroke, and diabetes, just to name a few.
Does your company have a Flexible Savings Account or Health Savings Account? These allow you to put away a preset amount tax-free. Even if you don’t have one, dental expenses fall into the health-care category and are tax deductible if your total health-care related costs exceed 7.5% of your adjusted gross income.
Prevention is always the best investment that you can make. Did you know that even if you don’t have dental insurance, all it takes is $1 a day to have 2 cleanings, X-rays, and checkups for the whole year? That’s a great investment that beats the stock market in any economy!
