Everyone is at least somewhat familiar with the concept of insurance. Most types of insurance (homeowner's, automobile, health) are purchased as a way of protecting us from unpredictable and catastrophic events (a house fire, totaling a car in an accident, developing a serious health problem).
While at least a part of the purpose of dental insurance coverage is to help protect us from the expenses associated with surprise events (like breaking a tooth while eating, or even rebuilding a person's mouth after a serious accident), comparatively speaking the vast majority of dental needs a person will experience throughout their lifetime will be non-catastrophic and relatively low in cost.
Because of this you will find that dental insurance is typically structured so it provides its benefits in a different fashion than most of the other types of insurance we buy. If you examine the way most dental insurance plans are set up you will see that the greatest portion of the benefits that an individual receives from their dental coverage differs from those types of benefits provided by most other types of insurance. The primary goal of the typical dental plan is to insure that the covered individual receives regular preventive dental care (checkups, dental cleanings, x-rays, dental sealants, fluoride). This is because dental insurers realize that most of the dental treatment an individual will require throughout their lifetime will not be caused by unpredictable events (such as an accident) but instead by situations where minor problems were not detected and dealt within an appropriate time frame.
Companies selling dental insurance plans know that if they can encourage a covered member to seek regular preventive dental care then that person's potential for needing extensive dental treatment during their lifetime will be greatly reduced. Thus, the insurance company's cost for providing dental care for that individual will be reduced too. Most dental insurance plans are set up so to encourage their covered individuals to seek regular preventive dental care (checkups, dental cleanings, x-rays, dental sealants, fluoride). The same dental care that helps to minimize the need for more extensive dental treatment (like root canals, dental crowns and bridgework). Dental insurance providers do this by way of structuring their dental plans so the member shoulders a greater portion of the cost of reparative dental treatment (dental fillings, crowns, dentures, etc...) than they do for routine preventive dental care (checkups, dental cleanings, and x-rays).
By making preventive dental treatment easily affordable for their members, the dental insurance company is actually reducing the overall cost of providing coverage for these individuals. While dental insurers are no doubt interested in the general well being of the individuals for which they provide coverage, lower dental expenses for their members also translate into greater profits for them.
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