I’ve needed two dental implants since my early teen years when an accident caused me to lose my two front teeth. My dentist provided me with a flipper and told me when I became an adult and my jaw stopped developing, I’d want to get dental implants. I’m a young adult now. I don’t have a ton of money, so I shopped around for an affordable dentist to do my dental implants. I did search for one with a good reputation for the quality of his work. His implant prices were within what I could do…just barely. But, when he agreed to do my implants he said he’d only do them if I also got a pair of porcelain veneers on either side of the implants. When I asked him why he said he didn’t want a patient of his walking around without perfectly matched teeth and the only way to get it right was to do the veneers with it. My dentist from my teen years never mentioned that and I don’t have that kind of money, which is why I was price shopping. Can he do this? It feels like extortion.
Brenda L.
Dear Brenda,
You are being extorted if he’s threatening not to do your dental implants without you also purchasing porcelain veneers. I can only think of two reasons he’d make that demand.
1. He’s not that good of a cosmetic dentist. A true cosmetic dentist could match your dental implants to your existing teeth. They wouldn’t need to create a set for all of your visible teeth to get them to match. It sounds like he’s developed that as a crutch for keeping patients from discovering he’s not as skilled as he should be. You shouldn’t have to pay for his mask.
2. The only other reason I can think of is he is purposefully and dishonestly inflating the price just to increase his profits.
Neither reason is good. So, obviously, I’m going to recommend you switch to a different dentist. The only reason to have porcelain veneers placed on your teeth is if YOU (not your dentist) want to make cosmetic changes to those teeth. However, even if you decide you want porcelain veneers, you can do better than this dentist. For your safety, look for a dentist who has a beautiful smile guarantee.
Honest Affordable Dental Implants
You can actually get affordable dental implants without having additional procedures, like porcelain veneers, added on. You will have to do some research to check out what other patients have experienced at the hands of the dentist.
Additionally, you’ll want to choose quality over cost. Even the most expensive dentist will space out the payments for dental implants. The procedure is done in stages and you only pay at each stage. Even if those stages are still too close together for you financially, there are other options.
Most dentists are willing to accept Care Credit. It’s a medical “credit card” of sorts. It has low and no interest payment plans. You choose the plan and there is no penalty for early payoff.
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