Dental implants have become the preferred medical standard for replacing missing teeth, but, because they are still considered an elective procedure, they’re often not covered by dental insurance policies. This means that patients often need to cover all or part of dental implants out of pocket. Implants alone have an average cost of $1,500 to $3,000 per tooth, and this amount doesn’t factor in the possibility of necessary tissue restoration or bone grafts, which can increase cost significantly. Unfortunately, people who have lost multiple teeth will gradually lose bone in their jaws as it resorbs without the support and stimulation of tooth roots. This means that the longer a patient goes before getting dental implants, the more complex, and therefore the more expensive, their required treatment procedure may be.
Thankfully, there are many financing options available to help defray the cost of dental implants and make budgeting for them more manageable. Some of these financing options require the patient to have a strong credit score, which can leave many people out in the cold when it comes to implant options. There are some financing options that are available for people with lower credit scores, however, and it’s good to know about these options before choosing to invest in dental implants.
To qualify for traditional financing with a healthcare credit account, patients generally need a credit score of at least 620. The higher the credit score is, the lower the interest rate usually is, though many of these financing options include lower promotional interest rates and other benefits for early repayment. Generally, monthly payments for these accounts fall between $200 and $500, depending in large part upon the interest rate and the overall cost of treatment. For patients who are also homeowners, a home equity line of credit can be a good way to borrow a sum of money with a lower interest rate; home equity lines of credit may also bear the benefit of being tax-deductible. Patients with higher credit scores may also use credit cards to pay for dental procedures, though these may also carry higher interest rates that should be noted and accounted for. If it’s possible to use a credit card with a 0% introductory interest rate, and it is reasonable to expect to pay it off promptly, this may be a good option for some patients.
Most patients who don’t qualify for traditional credit-based financing through primary lenders, including CareCredit and GreenSky, might apply for a subprime loan. These loans may have a minimum required credit score of 640, but the lenders can investigate the patient’s credit history beyond simply their credit score. Lenders evaluate the patient’s income, their employment history, and other valuable information in order to assess the possible risk of lending to that patient. Subprime loans may be accompanied by higher interest rates and origination fees, which can add to financial strain for patients and which benefit only the lender -- these additional funds go straight to the lender. This may tarnish the patient’s view of the dental practice and possibly of the overall procedure, even though subprime lenders function entirely independently from dental practitioners and practices.
Patients with lower credit scores may also choose to apply for a personal loan, which can either be secured or unsecured. A secured loan requires some type of collateral to improve the patient’s chances of loan approval and to increase the amount of money the patient is eligible to receive; common types of collateral include cars or real estate. There is risk connected to this, however, as the lender can repossess the collateral if the patient doesn’t pay or even doesn’t pay on time. Unsecured personal loans don’t require collateral from the patient. When these unsecured loans aren’t paid, they are sent to collection agencies, and the collection agency then works to collect the delinquent repayment amount. Because these loans involve more risk for the lender, it can be harder for patients with suboptimal credit to qualify for them.
There is a third financing option that will work for all patients, regardless of credit score. Lenders like Healthcare Finance Direct allow patients to pay their medical and dental bills over time, on a payment plan, and people who have been excluded from traditional financing options because of low credit scores can still qualify for these financing options. If your dentist’s dental practice partners with one of these pay-over-time lenders like Healthcare Finance Direct, you may be eligible to use the financing service for your dental implant procedure. Eligibility is determined with a multitude of data that allows the lender to assess risk and determine loan agreement and repayment options that include down payments. They can also establish reasonable interest rates that lessen the financial risk to patients. The dental practice benefits from partnering with these lenders, and the patients do, too. And, because the payments are debited directly from the patient’s bank account, loan repayment is prompt and manageable.
While the cost of a dental implant procedure may seem daunting, the cost of untreated edentulism, which means lack of teeth, also comes with many costs of its own. Over time, once the roots of teeth are no longer present to support the periodontal structure, the bones of the jaw will gradually degrade. This leads to loosened or ill-fitting removable dentures, which are uncomfortable and inconvenient, affecting the wearer’s ability to eat, talk, and even smile. Because difficulty eating will eventually affect a patient’s nutritional choices, long-term repercussions can include poor health due to malnutrition, which will increase overall healthcare costs in the long term. As the bones of the jaw resorb, the lower face takes on a sunken appearance, which can adversely affect a patient’s personal and professional life as well as their self-esteem. The more the bone degrades, the more challenging it is to place implants, since prosthodontists must graft bone in areas where there is insufficient bone to adequately support a stable implant. This adds to the overall cost of the implant procedure, sometimes significantly. These are valid and important reasons to look into dental implant treatment as soon as possible upon the loss of one or more teeth.