Supplementary dental insurance Aligner: Is the treatment covered?

Supplementary dental insurance Aligner: Are the costs for a tooth correction with invisible braces covered and what should be considered when choosing a tariff?

Aligners continue to be on the rise and are becoming more popular every year, especially among adults.

Because while we were still in good company with wires and brackets as teenagers, many of us in adulthood simply can’t imagine everyday life with wires and brackets in our mouths.

So it’s no wonder that more and more adults are choosing to have their teeth straightened with invisible aligners. After all, they are a discreet, painless and cost-effective alternative to fixed braces.

In fact, aligners are now available at a much lower price than fixed braces. Nevertheless, costs in the four-digit range are due here as well, which not everyone can handle without problems.

Aligners are made of high-quality materials and must be individually fabricated in the laboratory. In addition, there are the costs for one or more appointments with the dentist or orthodontist as well as for the high organizational effort.

Many supplemental dental insurance plans advertise that they cover orthodontics for adults as well. But does this even apply to aligners and does insurance pay even if it is only a cosmetic problem?

In this article we will answer all the important questions about the topic: “Supplementary dental insurance aligners – will the cost of treatment be covered?”

Here you can find a comparison of the most important dental splint providers.

How much do invisible aligners actually cost?

The cost of straightening teeth with aligners is based on the following factors:

• the severity of the malocclusion
• the duration of treatment and the associated number of splints required
• the type of correction desired
• the individual fee of the dentist or orthodontist

You will find out the final price for your treatment as soon as a treatment plan has been drawn up during your initial appointment.

For example, you can expect these costs from the renowned provider DrSmile:

Here you can find more detailed information about DrSmile prices.

Our tip: DrSmile generally offers very good value for money and communicates its prices transparently.

I myself (the editor of the article) am currently in the middle of treatment and can unreservedly recommend the aligner provider to you. I regularly report on my personal experiences in my videos.

Here you can find out whether your malocclusion is suitable for aligner therapy.

What do the health insurance companies pay?

In the case of serious malocclusions, health insurance companies usually cover the cost of braces for children and adolescents.

Unlike in the case of minors, malocclusions of the teeth and jaws in adults, on the other hand, must involve serious health restrictions in order for health insurance companies to contribute to the costs of correcting the teeth or even cover them entirely.

These include congenital malformation of the face or jaw or skeletal dysgnathia. If the jaw malposition is the result of an accident, the health insurance companies will also cover it.

However, even in these cases, only the minimum care is covered within the framework of the standard benefits. This means that treatment with invisible aligners is basically ruled out.

Supplementary dental insurance: What costs does it cover?

Supplementary dental insurance is not dependent on income and serves to protect patients against high private co-payments at the dentist or orthodontist.

Especially in the field of dentistry, health insurance companies often do not cover the costs or cover them only to a limited extent, so that many patients hope for support through private supplementary dental insurance.

The risk areas covered vary from provider to provider and, in turn, from tariff to tariff.

As a rule, however, the costs of dental treatments such as prophylaxis (e.g. dental cleanings), orthodontics (e.g. braces) or dentures (e.g. veneers, dentures or crowns) are covered.

Again, however, the question arises, “Supplemental dental insurance aligners – will the cost of treatment be covered?”

Supplementary dental insurance Aligner: Are the costs covered?

Some supplementary dental insurance plans cover all or part of the cost of invisible aligners. A prerequisite for this, however, is that the contract was concluded in good time.

In order to prevent their customers from taking out supplementary dental insurance exclusively for a specific service (e.g. tooth correction with aligners), most insurers set blackout periods.

These are usually about six months from the start of the contract – during this period no treatment costs are reimbursed.

Other companies, in turn, stagger the maximum amounts of their benefits in the first few years after taking out the insurance.

It is therefore important to know: Supplementary dental insurance should always be taken out in good time before starting aligner therapy.

Honesty is an absolute must here, because insurance companies can inspect medical records. In addition, health questions must always be answered correctly.

In addition, there must be a medical necessity for the tooth correction. Treatments for purely cosmetic reasons (e.g. dissatisfaction with the appearance of crooked teeth), on the other hand, are not covered.

The question: “Supplementary dental insurance aligners – are the costs for a discreet tooth correction covered?” can therefore not be answered in a blanket manner.

Supplementary dental insurance aligners for children and teenagers

Parents can also take out supplementary dental insurance for children and adolescents with rates that cover orthodontic treatment.

With more than half of children and teens now wearing braces, it can be well worth it.

Here it is also very important not to miss the right time to sign the contract. The policy should always be in place before the child or adolescent’s malocclusion is diagnosed by the dentist or orthodontist.

It is true that health insurance companies also usually pay for dental corrections for minors if there is a medical indication.

As already mentioned, however, only the minimum care is covered within the framework of the standard benefits.

Accordingly, only simple braces are paid for. Additional costs for innovative diagnostics, shorter wearing times or comfort and esthetics (e.g. aligners instead of fixed braces), on the other hand, are billed as private services and must be borne by the patient.

Older children and adolescents now also want to have their teeth corrected discreetly. Treatment with Invisalign Teen is possible, for example, before the eruption of all permanent teeth and from the age of 11.

Supplementary dental insurance Aligner: Which tariff is the right one?

Supplementary dental insurance is now offered by countless insurance companies. Complicating matters even more is the fact that each of them also offers different rates at different prices.

It is therefore particularly important to take a close look at the individual tariffs and their scope of benefits.

Among other things, you should think carefully about whether you would be better off with a relatively expensive tariff with 100 percent coverage, for example, or with a more favorable tariff in which only a partial amount between 50 and 70 percent is covered.

Providers who neither ask health questions nor have lock-up periods sound tempting at first. However, these tariffs are very expensive and often also offer a relatively low scope of services.

Basically, however, the following applies: We do not only recommend supplementary dental insurance if you are planning to have your teeth corrected.

Because in fact, services such as implants, veneers, full dentures, root canal treatments with crowning or general anesthesia almost always have to be paid for ourselves – and the co-payment definitely makes us gulp.

It is therefore worthwhile to take out favorable insurance cover in good time before dental treatment can become really expensive in an emergency.

By the way, the sooner you do this, the cheaper the premiums will be. As people age, they become more expensive as the risk to insurance companies increases.

DrSmile: The affordable alternative among aligner providers

Do you only need an esthetic correction of the front teeth or do you only have a slight to moderate malocclusion?

Then we recommend the cheaper provider DrSmile. This is because the company offers very good value for money and communicates its prices transparently.

Only high-quality materials and state-of-the-art technologies are used in the production “made in Germany & USA”.

Through the app, the course of treatment is regularly monitored and kept in view by dentists and orthodontists. Last but not least, DrSmile offers a satisfaction promise.

In this article, we will compare the two providers mentioned in this article in more detail: DrSmile vs. Invisalign.

Here you can find out whether your malocclusion is suitable for aligner therapy.

FAQs on the subject of supplementary dental insurance Aligners

At this point, we will answer some frequently asked questions about the topics of dental aligner insurance, aligner costs health insurance or transparent aligner health insurance.

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