dental clearance question

[The Noob]

ok, i know this has been addressed but when i went to hit reply and post the question, it said to start new thread.

so, hubby is almost done with the criteria for transplant. he has the colonoscopy next week, short meet with cardiologist, and then the dental part.

i took him a month ago to dentist. explained about the transplant criteria. they did xrays. did a deep clean. i told them we have no insurance for dental and its all out of pocket. they say he has no active infections but won't sign clearance until he has 3 more cleanings and 2 extractions. which of course requires yet another doc.
i don't think they heard me when i said no, we don't have a spare grand sitting around to do this.

when we went to eval last week, they said all that wasn't required. just that he has no infections. which he doesn't.

so i am going to have to find him another dentist? his two front teeth were cracked (one broke in half) when intubated a year ago. his teeth have always been crooked. they even suggested he get braces for a year first??? we do not have the funds for all this. when they did the cleaning, they insisted on giving antibiotic first, even though i had his D nurse on the phone saying wasn't required.

best get a different dentist? imput?

[cattlekid]

Definitely get a second opinion, if not a new dentist. We just had to switch dentists - we had a pragmatic dentist with bad hours that we used to love.  Because of his hours, we went to a new dentist who had every toy available.  And with those new dental toys came new "needs" - we just "had" to have deep cleanings, multiple cavities filled, on and on.  Since I've been in kidney failure, his techs will barely give me a cleaning but still think that I should be there four times a year, when our insurance only pays for two. They're afraid to touch me, I guess I think I'll bleed to death in their chair or something.  This is even after two nephrologists have told him that he's being overly cautious and that they can clean away. 

Now, because of this guy's issues, we have to switch dentists AGAIN to someone who won't bill over Reasonable & Customary and won't charge our credit card without giving us itemized bills.  His billing/office staff is awful - they insist on having a credit card on file and send in charges whenever they feel like it, without sending bills ahead of time so we can at least see what is being billed and compare it to what is being done.  A total racket, if you ask me. 

But at least this dude did give me dental clearance without too much of a fuss.   

[cariad]

Hi, hun, welcome back!

If dental insurance is anything like medical, you are probably paying this person more than he gets from the insured. He supposes that he has you both on the line and why not make it an extra special holiday for himself and his family.... Braces before a transplant? I think I would have dialed the attorney right there in the office. Tell your transplant clinic that this is going on, that he gave his verbal OK but refuses to sign the paper until you each have 10 grand in cosmetic procedures done. This is blatant extortion. You don't need to mention to the transplant coordinator that it is a financial issue, this is as much a time and trust issue as anything else. Every day on the list is a chance to get off dialysis, and you have done everything asked of you.

Yes you should get another dentist, but not to be cleared for transplant. Get your records from this slimeball dentist and try to proceed with those alone. Also, in situations like these, I highly recommend that you go on sites like Yelp and tell the world your experience. I had a particularly good experience with a dentist for my kids, and I did just that. If you absolutely must get a dentist's signature, ask if they have dentists at the transplant center and try to get it done there. Negotiate price beforehand, and quite possibly they will just do a quick check of his mouth and not even charge you. (Transplant hospital in Chicago where I go has a dental clinic onsite.)

[The Noob]

oh excellent advice! this is toledo hospital, ohio. when we speak to donor nurse next week will ask her.

he does have medicare, which paid for the one cleaning. if we'd have to it would cost us 140$ each time, and don't know what extraction would be.

i have no insurance for anything for myself. we don't qualify for medicaid or any other benefits except SSD and medicare and NKF is paying cobra for 29 months.
hence, would like to be positive and say he will get TX before then and eventually we can both go back to work?
i do love it when they ask if i "work". i told the last one who asked that "i donate my full time to a dialysis patient who can't afford to hire help"..

[rsudock]

braces before the dentist will sign off...what a bunch of BS!!! You don't have to have a mega watt movie star smile to get a transplant...to ask a dialysis patient to endure this procedure is ridiculous!!!

Yes he needs antibiotics before and after he goes to the dentist. If he gets an infection from his gums bleeding it could go to his heart...not good!

xo,
R

[The Noob]

well, D nurse said just for a cleaning wasn't needed. but we did it anyway.
i thought i was talking to a wall when speaking with dentist. i mean how clear can you be on NO DENTAL COVERAGE?

[okarol]

You can get help with dental here I think - check into Medicare for transplant clearance http://ihatedialysis.com/forum/index.php?topic=19369.0

[Sax-O-Trix]

My Tx hospital's dental clearance form was very specific:  No active infections.  Nothing else was a concern to them.

[Chris]

As other have said, get another dentist. I would check with your local counties health department to see if they can do some dental work either for free or at a drastic price cut as they do where I live. My condition and health was something they could not handle and they referrred me to area dentist and dental colleges that offer free service or discount service depending on income. If you have Medicaid, then it is free for sure. I went to one of the Universities in Chicago who did my extractions for free and would do dental work for free if I could ever get into their program. I just ended up going to a local dentist who worked with medicare and medicaid. Any out of pocket expence I had to pay I got a discount (nice for me and them, they get their money that day without waiting for insurance b.s.) which helped me meet my monthly Medicaid spend down.
 
So if your by  a large city or a university, look at their website and dental programs.
Good Luck