danybug Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 We took my ds today to set up his orthodontic treatment plan. Does it really cost $4800 for bracers and expander? Ugh! This was even with a $400 friends and family discount. And then we have to pay $600 to have 8 baby teeth extracted. I know there are payment plans and such, but gosh it is just so discouraging that an average American family can never get ahead. Luckily, we have bonuses coming up to pay for it but I had other things I already wanted to pay off with that money. I can't imagine what it is like for families with multiple kids. Do people really have to chose between their children's teeth being correct and affording to just get by? Ugh, just wanted to vent! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justamouse Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 *fingersinears* lalalalalaaaaa I have TWO that need braces and expanders. :glare: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clarkacademy Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 Yes it does we have another cild that needs braces. I am just wondering why the hurry? I mean if he still has all those baby teeth it will take a while for the perms to grow in so why so soon? Most ped dentist suggest braces after all the baby teeth are gone. I would get a second opinion on that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twilight Woods Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 My braces cost me $5300 including retainers... they come off June 6th :) DD braces will only cost me $2800 after dental insurance..... ETA we were told to wait until all her babyteeth are out.... we go every 6months to check her progress. Expensive but worth every penny for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starr Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 I think the expanders are often used early on. It was the removal of teeth and wisdoms that really killed us cost wise. They don't take a payment plan! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gingersmom Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 We were just at the orthodontist on Tuesday and go back tomorrow for x-rays and impressions. I paid around $5800 for my daughter (no insurance) and keeping my fingers crossed my sons will be at least a $1000 less as his teeth are not as crooked. I think thats why so many adults have braces. Their parents couldn't or chose not to give them orthodontic treatment as children. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Belacqua Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 My sympathies. That is a LOT of money. By what age can you pretty much figure a kid won't need braces? If, say, a kid has an acceptable bite by thirteen or so, are you probably off the hook? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StephanieZ Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 If you have a dental school nearby, that can be a good option. Here, it would be $5500 or so at the private orthodontists, but was $3600 or so at the dental school. Care there is top notch and supervised by the residents/professors. Things are a bit slow some times if a new person is learning, but it is well worth the savings, especially as I have another kid due to start as soon as this one finishes. . . and then a third that is 50/50 chance she'll need them, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
butterflymommy Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 $7000 here. And two more need them, plus DH wants Invisalign. :001_unsure: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lara in Colo Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 WE might have to wait and let them get braces on their own. That is the problem with braces: since DH had them, I didn't know that he had a million dollars worth of corrective dentistry in his youth. :001_smile: I, however, have naturally straight teeth.:D Things to ask while courting. Out of 4 children, 2 need them, one doesn't, and 1 is still full of baby teeth (but it isn't looking good). Lara Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
delaney Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 $6500 for the first kid and $7100 for the second(2 appliances for her):001_huh: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MamaT Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 We're on our 5th set here with 2 more to go. One kid needs 2 go-rounds because of her bite. The kid that has them on now - $4800. When we are totally through paying for braces, I am going to celebrate. I told our orthodontist that we deserve a room there named in our honor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AK_Mom4 Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 I totally agree - I nearly died of sticker shock when presented with the total for fixing DS16's teeth. $4500!!! We got a bit of a break because our medical insurance picked up the xrays. I do want to say, though, we got our $$$ worth. DS16 spent 16 months in braces and went from looking like a crooked picket fence to a million-dollar smile. Bad enough that his bite problems were causing him headaches. And we had lots of extra visits since DS16 couldn't tolerate much adjustment at a time and his bite was screwy enough that the wires would break if they weren't exactly right. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BakersDozen Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 I am just wondering why the hurry? I mean if he still has all those baby teeth it will take a while for the perms to grow in so why so soon? Most ped dentist suggest braces after all the baby teeth are gone. I would get a second opinion on that. We were given an outrageous quote when my older dc were 12, 11 and 10yo. I waited two years, went back, and got a much better quote from a different orthodontist. No teeth had to be pulled and treatment time was less than if we had begun two years earlier. Plus my oldest dd did not need the expander the first orthodontist said she needed. :glare: Second and even third opinions are a good idea before agreeing to treatment that costs in the thousands of dollars, imo. I don't understand why treatment is started on dc so young, either! One girl in my Awana class just turned 9 and already has braces! :confused: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newlifemom Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 $5800 here. I didn't let anyone go to the dr last year to save up a sizable down payment. I also just made another one from taxes. I still have $125.00 a month payments. :glare: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danybug Posted May 9, 2012 Author Share Posted May 9, 2012 We're on our 5th set here with 2 more to go. One kid needs 2 go-rounds because of her bite. The kid that has them on now - $4800. When we are totally through paying for braces, I am going to celebrate. I told our orthodontist that we deserve a room there named in our honor. :lol: You should totally have a room in your honor! You cracked me up! I can not imagine having to spend that much $ on teeth :glare: God Bless You! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danybug Posted May 9, 2012 Author Share Posted May 9, 2012 Some of you mentioned that he should be waiting until his baby teeth come in. But in his X-rays his baby teeth are causing issues and more damage and he had two on the top that are out over top the baby. Dh and I told ds we should just kick them out and save the family some money :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nukeswife Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 Yep, our part after insurance for my oldest was $700 up front and then $140 a month for 20 months. So our part was $3500 and the insurance picked up $1500 although our insurance is changing and they'll cover $1750 now so our ortho is checking to see if we can get that extra $250 for my son. Our Orthodontist started seeing my son at age 11, but just had us come back every 6 months for a re-eval because he won't put them on until he feels he can have the kid done and out of braces in under 24 months. So he went for a few evals and then had them put on last Halloween. I'm already amazed at how much better his teeth look. I know my dd will need them and she's in the evals every 6th months stage. We probably have a year or so before she'll get them on. We're pretty sure my youngest will eventually need them. All the kids seem to have gotten my crummy bite. I had braces on from 6th-11th grade. It stunk and my orthodontist was mean. My son loves his orthodontist and I have to say I wish there was a guy like him when I had mine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Princess Peach Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 Mmm yeah. I am already hearing the preaching from the dentist about this. Unless there is some major problem I'm not double mortgaging the house for it. It's ridiculous. :grouphug: Same here. Two of my kids have been referred to the ortho, but we won't be going. Their teeth look fine and there aren't any issues that need to be medically dealt with. I'm not of the opinion that every kid that doesn't have perfect teeth needs braces. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
itsheresomewhere Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 What about just pulling the baby teeth that are the issue right now? Then they re-evaluate in a year/two years or after all baby teeth are out. It can lower the cost as they might not need all the treatment as they grow. Never go with just one opinion, get several. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MtnTeaching Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 Both kids are in braces right now. We were also told recently that ds may have to have surgery because his jaw is growing incorrectly. He is growing so fast right now, I have no idea how they can even tell that. At 15, he is almost 6'3" and his dad is 6'8". I feel your pain, definitely sticker shock. There went my landscaping I was hoping to get after 6 years of weeds.:tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dancer67 Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 Since we are self employed, and HAVE to have insurance, we qualify for state insurance(NOT welfare). Because we have that, our daughter has something similar to Medicaid. So her braces COULD be covered 100%. We went to the Ortho, and pictures were taken and submitted to the insurance company for approval. Nope, denied. You have to have a SEVERE maloclussion(SP??)...or overbite. I appealed it. The ortho quoted us $3600.00 including retainer. We went to appeal, and they have agreed to pay it. Thank goodness. Braces are a rip off. I cannot imagine having to pay for 2 in braces. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ferdie Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 I would get 3 quotes. My oldest was more complicated yet his quotes came within $100 of each other. My youngest was straight forward and there was a $800 difference between highest and lowest quote. Also something that one of the orthos told me didn't make sense based on what the other two orthos told me. I would definitely get a 2nd/3rd opinion before pulling teeth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KirstenH Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 Mine (which I got as an adult because my parents refused to pay for it as a child) were $8800. I think insurance paid 80% of it, though. Right after I got my braces off, I had to get a $1200 root canal (insurance paid 80% of that, too), bringing the grand total to $10K. I now call it my "ten thousand dollar smile." :D I'm not looking forward to the bills for the kids. My eldest is already showing the signs of serious crowding. Sigh. ETA: MAKE SURE RETAINERS GET WORN, or ALL the money will be for nothing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Georgiana Daniels Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 :grouphug: BTDT, and now that we've finished paying for oldest DD, they are starting to look at DD2. I totally sympathize. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
courtney.byrum Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 My DD will need an expander and braces early on - they are waiting on certain teeth to come in before doing anything but we expect a referral to the ortho at the next apt as she doesn't even have room for her bottom teeth to be forward where they belong. She has no room at all for all her teeth - thankfully her permanent teeth are small or there'd be no hope at all. Her dentist is hoping that with an expander we will be able to avoid pulling teeth. Thankfully for DS it will only be straightening if it is needed at all - so far his teeth are coming in fairly straight. I'm not looking forward to the cost at all :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donna Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 I would get a few opinions. When my oldest was 9yo, the original ortho wanted to pull a pile of teeth, baby and permanent, then have him in braces for 3-5 years. His baby teeth were crooked...very small mouth. I didn't want to go that route so went with the dentist who put him in a palate expander for 18 months, waited a few years until all the baby teeth except one came out (one had an impacted permanent tooth located in the roof of his mouth so had to be pulled and that tooth chained to his braced to bring it down). He will be in braces for a little less than 2 years. The cost was spread out a little more because we paid for step 1---the palate expander when he was 9yo and step 2--when he was 15yo. It was quite a bit less even added together than the original ortho...if I remember correctly about $500 less. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 We set aside $5000 for medical expenses in one of those tax-free accounts and spent nearly all of it on dd's braces. We can finally do that--our middle son has terrible teeth and we couldn't afford to fix them. By the time we could, he was an adult and not into having braces. I will say we LOVE our ortho, and he gets great results, but sheesh, it is expensive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redsquirrel Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 It cost us 6,000 with no extractions or anything, just plain old braces. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LMA Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 I have two in braces. It's not all cosmetic. Both of my boys have jaw alignment problems and their jaws were not growing out the way they should (hereditary). My second son had his two front teeth overlapping like they were fangs. He is in the middle of phase I. He will need phase II as phase I made a lot of room in his mouth, but he has a significant overbite now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grace'smom Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 I wish we could get by with 6k. Our seven year old's x-rays just showed that she has only twelve adult teeth. Twenty are missing. I agree with the pp who said to look into family history, lol. Unfortunately, it came from my side... Anyway, her college fund is now competing with her teeth fund. The dentist and the orthodontist both said 20k would be getting off easy, and 30 to 50 is more likely. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KS_ Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 (edited) We took my ds today to set up his orthodontic treatment plan. Does it really cost $4800 for bracers and expander? Ugh! This was even with a $400 friends and family discount. And then we have to pay $600 to have 8 baby teeth extracted. I know there are payment plans and such, but gosh it is just so discouraging that an average American family can never get ahead. Luckily, we have bonuses coming up to pay for it but I had other things I already wanted to pay off with that money. I can't imagine what it is like for families with multiple kids. Do people really have to chose between their children's teeth being correct and affording to just get by? Ugh, just wanted to vent! Yep, I think that's about average. Both my dc are in braces, and this is dd 2nd round (the first round was only $1800 and the second round is $3900 - <sigh>). We thankfully had money set aside before dd's first round and ds's treatment, but we will have to work on getting this 2nd round paid for. Both kids didn't have enough room for all their teeth, so it was something we felt we needed to do to save them from large costs when they got to adulthood. ETA: And our dental insurance doesn't cover any orthodontic work. Edited May 10, 2012 by KH_ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shinyhappypeople Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 We took my ds today to set up his orthodontic treatment plan. Does it really cost $4800 for bracers and expander? Ugh! This was even with a $400 friends and family discount. And then we have to pay $600 to have 8 baby teeth extracted. I know there are payment plans and such, but gosh it is just so discouraging that an average American family can never get ahead. Luckily, we have bonuses coming up to pay for it but I had other things I already wanted to pay off with that money. I can't imagine what it is like for families with multiple kids. Do people really have to chose between their children's teeth being correct and affording to just get by? Ugh, just wanted to vent! :grouphug: You have my deepest sympathies! Have you gotten 2nd and 3rd opinions? I started this thread last October and got great advice. The less expensive orthodontist has been a gem, DD absolutely loves him and her smile is already looking *beautiful* (albeit with a sparkly, metallic shine)! :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
~Anna~ Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 My DD has had hers on for almost a year (in June). She was scheduled to have them for 2 years, with an additional appliance to be added to move her jaw. Her top teeth have been straight for months, he was only working on the bottom ones and now they are straight too. He thinks she may be out of them by the fall and doesn't think she will need the extra appliance now because her bite has almost corrected itself. I don't know if that's just from her growing, or from the teeth straightening up, or a combination of both. I am certainly glad for her, but they cost $4500 (that was only after a discount because we had a certain insurance, it was going to be $5200). Then my insurance paid $1150. Even though she is not getting that appliance, I am sure I won't get any money back even though I think I should since I was essentially paying for something that she won't be getting now. Glad I only have one :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J-rap Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 That is about what we paid. I remember being shocked the first time I heard. We had three in braces altogether. It's like taking out a car loan. For our older two, we had to wait until they were in high school. (Just couldn't swing it before then.) One of our daughters got them off just a month before senior pictures. Fortunately they weren't the type to care! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AngelaNYC Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 Yep. Dd's clear braces, expanders, retainer, and all follow-up visits cost $4300 after our insurance (which covered $1500). After an initial $500 payment, we did $150/month for about 26 months. We waited until all her adult teeth were in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom2jjka Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 Sigh - yes the cost is outrageous. My kids were both around $7000 a piece...and I've still got 2 more who need them. :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justamouse Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 I have two in braces. It's not all cosmetic. Both of my boys have jaw alignment problems and their jaws were not growing out the way they should (hereditary). My second son had his two front teeth overlapping like they were fangs. He is in the middle of phase I. He will need phase II as phase I made a lot of room in his mouth, but he has a significant overbite now. This is us. It has nothing to do with cosmetics, they really need them and it's all my husband's fault. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SonshineLearner Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 WE might have to wait and let them get braces on their own.Lara The problem with this is that you need to get them done before everything "sets". There are things that can be done while your child is young, that aren't possible when your child is an adult. Also, it depends on how your child's self esteem will be affected. My son thinks that his front two teeth are cool looking... "Like Beaver's teeth" he said... but when he's a bit older and some other kids comment on them... he may not think that's so great.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amber in SJ Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 My oldest dd started with an expander at 10yo, the ortho told us she'd be all finished by 12yo. Unfortunately, because of how slowly she lost her baby teeth (we pulled the last 4) she was in braces until she was 15yo. The total cost, including the visit to the oral surgeon for teeth pulling was $6000. The ortho said he didn't want to see our next dd until all her baby teeth were gone. This worked out for us because DH was "underemployed" 2008-2010 and there was no way to pay for braces. This year our dd is almost 15, her last baby tooth just fell out & we took her to the ortho. He had a deal on our local groupon for $1500 off. Her treatment will be $4800. We do not have insurance. Between braces & college tuition we will be joining the beans & rice club. Amber in SJ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lisbeth Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 The problem with this is that you need to get them done before everything "sets". There are things that can be done while your child is young, that aren't possible when your child is an adult. Also, it depends on how your child's self esteem will be affected. My son thinks that his front two teeth are cool looking... "Like Beaver's teeth" he said... but when he's a bit older and some other kids comment on them... he may not think that's so great.... Agreed! I would get them even for cosmetic reasons. DH and his brother don't smile with their teeth to this day because his parents wouldn't get them fixed. Yet his dad had a new car every year and the newest gadgets....grrrr! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WeeBeaks Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 Our oldest just got his ortho referral too. We are waiting a little but will get in. He is 10 and has zero room so needs to have something done early to hopefully make some room. I had the same problem, but no ortho as a kid. As an adult I'm missing teeth that got shoved out (adult teeth) so now have to deal with a bridge and bite problems after ortho as a late teen and again as an adult (both paid for by me). If I had earlier ortho, I wouldn't need the bridge, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandalwood Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 I would be happy with your cost... My son just got his a few months ago and his is a "moderate" case and our cost was something like $5300. It blew me away! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom0012 Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 Yes, it seems like all the orthodontists in our area charge about the same price - $5,300. What really surprised me was that my daughter has a very simple overbite, but it is costing me just as much to get her teeth straightened as it is for a friend of mine to have her son's far more complicated teeth problems fixed. The other thing that amazes me is that I don't believe the orthodontist has spent more than 1 1/2 hours with my daughter in total over the last year. If you add in time with dental assistants, then maybe it's been 2 1/2 hours. So, we'll probably get another 2 - 3 hours of services over the next year until the braces come off if things stay the same. That's quite an hourly rate -- about $1,000/hour!!! Lisa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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