[autokad]

i'm very happy its under a separate umbrella. think of all the years of unnecessary education they'd pile on to dentistry and the bottle necks they would put up to raise the wages to MD level.

currently it costs 150$ to show up 10 minutes early for an appointment to be seen 20 minutes late for an interaction that lasts 5 minutes. and then i say 'my knee also hurts' and they say you need to schedule another appointment if you want to discuss any other ailments. insurance covers 100$ of that, but I am under no illusion of the cost.

do we need to raise dental awareness? sure. do we need to put it under the bureaucracy and price fixing of the medical system? i dont think so

[mivade]

> think of all the years of unnecessary education they'd pile on to dentistry and the bottle necks they would put up to raise the wages to MD level.

That seems more an indictment of the medical education system than the insurance system. There are already parallel medical education systems in the US (MD vs. DO, although there is little practical difference). Seeing either type of physician is treated equally by health insurance. Why can't health insurance also cover DDS visits as well?

[chimeracoder]

> MD vs. DO, although there is little practical difference). Seeing either type of physician is treated equally by health insurance

Uh, not exactly. MDs and DOs do receive different sorts of education, and insurance can distinguish between them.

[Broken_Hippo]

This isn't necessarily true.

Most dentists won't even need additional education - after all, we are actually just trying to get what they do covered. It doesn't mean the system or education must change, and in practice it will be like going to a specialist without having to visit the GP first. You wouldn't complain to the gastric specialist that your knee hurts either.

The bigger changes would be in health insurance coverage and things like that. Basic cleanings are more likely to be cheap: extractions might wind up costing more if one must pay their deductible first. Sure, some of the services will continue to be cosmetic only - but plastic surgeons (who often also do reconstructive surgery along with complicated dental extractions) seem to manage this just fine.

You being seen on time isn't an issue with this, honestly. Some doctor's offices have a habit of being on time. You can let them know upfront that you have multiple issues as well - this allows them to schedule more time with you (and bill insurance accordingly).

[autokad]

once you bring dentistry under the medical insurance, i believe everything else bad in medicine follows.

dental insurance is already a lot more affordable, its just that people treat their dentist like an emergency intervention rather than maintenance.

that is solved through awareness, not trying to pull dentistry into the incredible blob

[dikdik]

> the bottle necks they would put up to raise the wages to MD level.

Dentists can easily make more money than the majority of physicians. Not to mention they don't have a residency, my few dentist friends came out of dental school at 26 making 150k+.