Dentist for Dental Implant Crown
I'm looking for a dentist in the Berkeley, El Cerrito, Oakland area that can put a crown on my implant. I really have had a falling out with my current dentist. I feel I was completely ripped off. I'm in over $6,000 for one tooth - $5,000 for the extraction, the implant, multiple fancy 3-D Xrays, the abutment and the "retainer/mold" to get me to this point, and I don't even have the crown yet. I can't believe how much this has cost. Something is wrong.
MetLife is the insurance.
Thanks for any recommendations that you can give.
Aug 19, 2019
Parent Replies
I think you would pay the same without insurance. My dentist is in the financial district in SF - Santwani Dental. 415-986-2636
I am going through a root canal and crown process right now after having a similar situation with a ridiculous dentist in SF.
I am not sure about MetLife, as I have Guardian, but I have had a very good experience with Endospecialists (they have locations in Oakland, Berkeley and El Cerrito) with Dr. Fujimara - he is incredible. And dentist I have been seeing is Dr. Nam at Daniel Nam, DDS & Associates in Pill Hill (by Alta Bates Oakland). My experience with Dr Nam thus far is that he is straightforward and doesn't jump the gun on unnecessary procedures.
good luck!
I recommend Dr Rainey at https://www.berkeleydentaloffice.com/about/. She is not in network with any insurance, but the truth is that in general, dental insurance really sucks and barely covers anything beyond cleanings. She is very patient and fair, and will give you an honest answer about pricing.
I’m not sure if this will be helpful, but I’ve had an implant (years ago even) and the amount you have spent sounds about right, unfortunately. Another thing to think about: assuming your dentist is in network, I was told that at least in my case given they were in network, they were charging me what the insurance contract basically spells out that they can charge me, it wasn’t even their decision what to charge and “shopping around” wouldn’t have made a difference. (Perhaps your insurance or someone more well versed in how this all works can verify or explain better than I am).
Assuming you have already spent above your insurance max benefit for the year, can you wait until the next calendar year to do the crown when insurance resets? That’s what I did. I verified with my dentist though that diligent wearing of my retainer would keep the space intact, and I would recommend you make sure of this as well with your dentist before doing this route. Good luck! The cost of these is really staggering.
I love my dentist, Dr. Sharma at 3000 Colby. She has always given me great advice and never steered me wrong, never overcharged me.