Apparently, our 14yodd is an "Adult" (at least, according to MetLife)

[Suzanne in ABQ]

Our dental insurance just informed us (by not paying a bill) that our 14 year old dd is an adult, and is therefore not eligible for standard childhood treatments (like fluoride).

 

 

Is 14 the standard age of "Adult" status, as far as dental insurance is concerned? Does this come up in other areas (health insurance, etc).

 

Please don't debate the pros and cons of fluoride treatments (btdt). I'm mainly wondering about the practice of declaring a 14yo an adult.

[Mom2absh]

Our dental insurance still covers my 14 yo dd.

 

However, companies can decide what their insurance policies will cover - our health insurance used to stop paying for well-care visits once the kids were 6! Then my dh's company changed what they will cover, and now we now have them paid for every OTHER year :-/

 

J

[m0mmaBuck]

Our plan doesn't pay for fluoride treatments at any age... Although our medical insurance will pay for fluoride drops/pills for the kids.

[Garga]

What was the exact wording of the denial? And did it mean that your 14 year old was an adult, or that by the age of 14, most people's adult teeth have come in?

 

I think that once the adult teeth are all in, the flouride treatments aren't considered necessary anymore. I could be wrong, but a quick google search seemed to indicate to me that they don't do the flouride after the adult teeth are all formed and grown in.

 

And another search seemed to show that kids have their adult molars around age 13.

[Farrar]

 

And another search seemed to show that kids have their adult molars around age 13.

 

Not your wisdom teeth, which come in during your late teens/early 20's? But most people have those removed.

[nmoira]

 

Our plan doesn't pay for fluoride treatments at any age...

Ours pays for one per year, so we pay the second out-of-pocket. I don't recall the age cut-off, but it's sometime in the early teens.

[Tap]

I have had

 

Aetna

Cigna

UniCare

all in the past 6 years.

Several others I don't remember the names of in the past 15.

 

Every policy I have ever looked at for my kids, ended fluoride and sealants at 12-13-14. I make sure to have them check, before any appointments, what is covered in our cleanings and note it in our file.

 

I once had to pay for a treatment that was not covered, that the dentist considered routine. I didn't know that the treatment wasn't covered until months after, when I got the bill.

 

I stopped my practice of this last year, due to having the same dentist and policy for several years. After we all got our 6mth cleanings, I got a bill for them because he stopped being a 'preferred provider' on my policy and didn't tell me. GRRRRR They went from being covered 100% to me having to pay for $160 worth of the bill. We haven't been back.

[AHASRADA]

I live in Canada, and the gov't health insurance covers dental care for kids under the age of 10 :confused:. I'm not sure where they came up with the arbitrary age, since my 10 year old certainly doesn't have all of her adult teeth yet. However, both of my kids had their cavities between the ages of 4-8 but are fine now, so maybe they are on to something. Anyway, it's better than nothing.

 

As for medical healthcare, 14 is the magic age where I live at which a child can seek out their own medical care, without parental consent. Obviously, since 14 has no correlation with any other age of majority, it is clear that this age was chosen to facilitate "family planning" services for teen girls. To avoid any type of double-standard as is common in the US (ie: a girl can get birth control, but no other medical services, without her parents' consent), the gov't has opted to simply declare all children 14 and older as autonomous individuals in regard to their healthcare.

 

So yes, I guess 14 can be a turning point in some aspects of medical care wherever you live. Check your policy!

[NanceXToo]

You should write them an anonymous letter that says something like:

 

Dear Met Life,

 

The other day, my husband, my 14 year old daughter and I, all went to a bar to have a few drinks and to spend some quality time together. At least, we tried to. But the bartender wouldn't serve her. I mean, he refused. Can you believe it? It was quite aggravating, seeing as she is an adult and all. Who the heck was HE to refuse to serve her?!

 

You can imagine how annoyed she got when we stopped at the convenience store afterward so she could buy a pack of cigarettes. They ID'd her and told her there was no way they were going to sell them to her. The nerve of them, refusing to sell cigarettes to a consenting adult!

 

We were aggravated, but, still, we went ahead with our plans to sign our daughter up for the Army. It's her lifelong dream. But can you believe they said she is still too young?! Who do they think they are?!

 

I just want to say how grateful I am that YOU, Met Life, understand that my 14 year old is now an adult and should be treated as such!

 

Who needs fluoride treatments, anyway?!

 

Sincerely,

So and so's mom.

[angela in ohio]

They are saying that fluoride treatments are not standard care for those over age 13. It doesn't mean she can't have them, just that if you want something out of the ordinary, you have to pay for it yourself.