DENTAL SURVEY
Cal Broker's
Compiled by Thora Madden
W
e’ve been through some rough times— and we aren’t yet out of the woods. But Californians are still smiling, thanks in no small part to the folks in the dental health world. We checked in with some key dental health providers to hear about their plans, how COVID-19 impacted business and more. 1. What types of plans do you offer? Mark Zeedik, senior manager, specialty sales, consumer, and small group, Blue Shield of CA: Blue Shield has
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provided dental coverage for more than 25 years, and our dental program is an integral part of Blue Shield’s mission to provide Californians with access to high-quality health care at a reasonable price. We are committed to providing excellent dental care and member satisfaction through a spectrum of diverse dental plans. We develop and customize our plans to meet changing marketplace demands and the individual needs of our customers. Currently, more than 500,000 members are either enrolled in the Blue Shield dental program or use its networks for services.
Our dental PPO and HMO plans offer members a wide variety of plan designs and networks to fit their budget. For individuals and families, we offer a unique dental PPO plan with member copayments instead of the usual coinsurance percentages. Our dental HMO plan offers comprehensive benefits with predetermined member copayments. Finally, our Duo plan offers members dental and vision coverage at a single price. Our plans can be sold with medical plans or on a stand-alone basis. For senior members, we offer two comprehensive dental PPO plans for
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Medicare supplement plan members. For groups, some of our dental PPO and HMO plans are available on a contributory or voluntary basis. Most can be sold with or without Blue Shield medical plans, and they are either based on Usual, Customary, and Reasonable fees or reimbursements that are capped by the Maximum Allowable Charge. Joe Stefano, divisional VP, Western U.S., The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America: Guardian offers an array of plan types and options to meet the needs
JULY 2021