PLEASE NOTEthat patients are responsible for the full financial cost of the dental treatment regardless of their insurance situation. Based on the information provided by you and your insurance company, we will make every effort in estimating the total cost of each dental treatment.
Please understand that we file dental insurance as a courtesy to our patients. Specific coverage and handling of benefit are determined by the insurance company. We can only assist in estimating your portion of the payment for the services we provide. Therefore, the exact amount of payment from the insurance company is never known to our office until the claim is sent after the dental procedure is completed. For this reason, you may receive a bill from our office for the remaining balance not covered by your insurance. Similarly, should the insurance company pay for more than the estimated amount, we will send you a refund check within 60 days.
After an insurance claim is processed, we will wait up to 60 days for payment from your insurance company. If no payment is received,it is your responsibilityto pay for the remaining balance and contact the insurance company directly for further inquiries. Ultimately, we are not responsible for any errors in filing your insurance, but will make every effort to help our patients through this process. Once again, we file claims as a courtesy to our patients.
We accept most insurance providers. As a courtesy to our patients, we help file all claims on your behalf. However, the ultimate responsibility for the claim payment belongs to you. We will assist you in estimating your portion of the treatment cost, but cannot predict the actions of your insurance company. To increase accuracy of treatment cost estimation,PLEASEkeep us informed of any changes to your name, insurance information, and employment.
Fact 1 NO INSURANCE PAYS 100% OF ALL PROCEDURESDental insurance is meant to provide assistance in payment. Many patients assume that their insurance pays 90%-100% of all dental fees. This is not true! Most plans pay between 50-80% of the average total fee. Your coverage is usually determined by the type of contract selected by your employer and how much you or your employer has paid for coverage.
Fact 2 BENEFITS ARE NOT DETERMINED BY OUR OFFICE (?)You may have sometimes noticed that your dental insurer reimburses you or your dentist at a rate lower than that of the dentists actual fee. In these situations, insurance companies may explain that the reimbursement rate was reduced because the dentists fee exceeds the usual, customary, or reasonable fee (UCR) used by the company.
Such statements imply that fees greater than the paid amount by the insurance company are unreasonable or exceed the average fee charged by other dentists in the area. This is very misleading and simply not accurate.
UCR fees vary widely from one insurance company to another. Each insurance company determines the amount of coverage for a given procedure and sets a UCR fee that allows for a 20-30% profit by the insurance company.
In general, the less expensive insurance policies will use a lower usual, customary, or reasonable (UCR) figure. Rather than admitting to a limited benefit package, some insurance companies will imply that dental offices overcharge.
Reviews
Rating 4.4 out of 5 based on 12 reviews
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2 years ago
We were referred to First Smiles by family dentist for our five-year-old daughter. It was concluded that she needed some extractions, some baby root canals, and some fillings. Full anesthesia is required to perform all of the above with one visit to the dental office. The dentist, Dr. Kao estimated that the procedure will take 45 minutes to an hour after patient is sedated. There is one single anesthesiologist that Dr. Kao works with, Dr. Edwin Lee. Dr. Kao said the two have worked together for over ten years. He would not perform the procedure with any other anesthesiologist. Dr. Lee also does not do any insurance claim filing for procedures he performs. We consulted at a different dental office whereas they use Bay Anesthesia. Based on scheduling needs, it could be any board certified anesthesiologist from this company that's assigned to your case. At the time, we felt that since Dr. Kao has been working with Dr. Lee together for many years, it sounds like there is more assurance. So we picked First Smile despite the logistical burden on us with the insurance company. On the day of the appointment, we arrived at 8:07 a.m., a few minutes late due to heavy fog. We met Dr. Lee, and the little one was put to sleep within five minutes. We were then led into Dr. Kao's consultation room to chat with Dr. Kao while supposedly, Dr. Lee put an IV line in and the assistant needs to take X-rays. It sounds like it should only take a few minutes, but for some reason Dr. Kao was not asked to go in and get started until about 9:00 o'clock. And the procedure did not finish until after 10 o'clock. We were asked to go into the treatment room when the little one was ready to wake up. She immediately started crying and coughing, we were told such is normal and we expected it. However, as she coughed, she kept choking up thick bloody mucus, and she was gagging. Dr. Lee, however, was indifferent, and asked us to pick her up and leave right away to let her recover in our car. Upon my request, he performed suction by forcefully and bluntly shoving the suction tube into her mouth and sucked once. He did not care that thick bloody mucus continue to come out of her mouth. He did not check any vitals and just asked us to leave right away. When my husband tried to pick up the little one and attempted to avoid hurting her. Dr. Lee said: let me do it. He clamped down on her thighs and carried her to our car while she continued to cough up bloody mucus. While we were trying to use tissues to wipe away the mucus that kept coming out, Dr. Lee reminded us of his fees. We paid him. He gave us a receipt without procedure code or billing code. He said he will provide more information in three weeks. If not, he needs a reminder. My daughter continued to cough up thick bloody mucus for the next 30 to 40 minutes during the ride home and after she got home, She seems to be doing ok, and she does not remember anything after she was put to sleep on that day. However, I can not stop wondering what happened in that room. I have worked in dental office before, suction is an ongoing process throughout dental procedures like this. Why did she have so much mucus accumulated? Why did the preparation take so long? Why did the procedure take so long? Why didn't Dr. Lee check her vitals after she woke up? Why didn't he seem to even care that there was so much bloody mucus? Why did he only perform suction upon my request? Why did he show no interest to help her? After this traumatic experience, in hind sight, we should have picked the other dental office who uses a reputable company whereas the dentist does not have any locked in relationship with any individual anesthesiologist, which hinders quality oversight, and conduct monitoring. By the way, Dr. Lee did not send us any detail for insurance claim as he had promised. He sent nothing even after two separate reminders. Nor did he respond. So if your child needs general anesthesia at this dental office, beware!
Patricia Wu
2 years ago
Very bad. My son has three decayed teeth. They asked us to do the examination and prescribed my son amoxicillin. And they said my son had to be treated with the antibiotics before his worst tooth could get root canal. But after my son took medicine for a week, we didn't get any appointment for another three weeks. They just told us to wait but no solution. My son's face is swollen because of tooth infection. I have to call another Children's dentist for an appointment. I asked First Smile to send me the X-ray, and they told me I have to wait 5 days for the copy of the X-ray because Dentist Charles Kao is not in the office. I felt so angry. If appointment is not available, why don't they tell me to seek other dentist for the help. Now the treatment is delayed. My son has to take medicine for another time. REALLY, REALLY BAD EXPERIEANCE
Patricia Wu
3 years ago
Very bad. My son has three decayed teeth. They asked us to do the examination and prescribed my son amoxicillin. And they said my son had to be treated with the antibiotics before his worst tooth could get root canal. But after my son took medicine for a week, we didn't get any appointment for another three weeks. They just told us to wait but no solution. My son's face is swollen because of tooth infection. I have to call another Children's dentist for an appointment. I asked First Smile to send me the X-ray, and they told me I have to wait 5 days for the copy of the X-ray because Dentist Charles Kao is not in the office. I felt so angry. If appointment is not available, why don't they tell me to seek other dentist for the help. Now the treatment is delayed. My son has to take medicine for another time. REALLY, REALLY BAD EXPERIEANCE
Janet Chuang
4 years ago
Daughter has been coming here for 10 years - from toddler-hood through cancer treatments. They knew she had been receiving many x-rays, so postponed their own. Gentle, customized care.
Irene Ching
4 years ago
Dr. Kao and his staff are wonderful. The office is clean and bright. We are treated with respect and treatment is explained clearly.
Janet Chuang
5 years ago
Daughter has been coming here for 10 years - from toddler-hood through cancer treatments. They knew she had been receiving many x-rays, so postponed their own. Gentle, customized care.
Irene Ching
5 years ago
Dr. Kao and his staff are wonderful. The office is clean and bright. We are treated with respect and treatment is explained clearly.
Steven Chao
5 years ago
Best Peds dentist in town. My boy broke his front tooth in the playground, Dr KAO toke care of it with minimal work. Safe the tooth without all the invasive procedures. Highly recommended!
sherry Marmol
5 years ago
Great place my son hates the Dentist but he is pretty ok with this place. They are all very nice here.
sherry Marmol
6 years ago
Great place my son hates the Dentist but he is pretty ok with this place. They are all very nice here.
Steven Chao
6 years ago
Best Peds dentist in town. My boy broke his front tooth in the playground, Dr KAO toke care of it with minimal work. Safe the tooth without all the invasive procedures. Highly recommended!
Jeffrey Butler
6 years ago
I brought my daughter in for the first time here and I was immediately impressed the entire office is brand new. It's so cute, very modern but yet still warming for children. My child was seated right away and Dr. Marfatia and his assistant were so gentle and patient. I have a very energetic three year who can't stay still but yet managed to get the exam and a cleaning with them! Wow!! Their front office Stephanie is so friendly and accommodating I was able to get a an appointment right away regardless of my busy schedule. I highly recommend First Smile density for anyone who has children.
Jeffrey Butler
7 years ago
I brought my daughter in for the first time here and I was immediately impressed the entire office is brand new. It's so cute, very modern but yet still warming for children. My child was seated right away and Dr. Marfatia and his assistant were so gentle and patient. I have a very energetic three year who can't stay still but yet managed to get the exam and a cleaning with them! Wow!! Their front office Stephanie is so friendly and accommodating I was able to get a an appointment right away regardless of my busy schedule. I highly recommend First Smile density for anyone who has children.
Pawel Veselov
7 years ago
This is the place to go to, so your child is never afraid of the dentist again. My 3 year old was laughing throughout having his cavities filled, seriously.
Pawel Veselov
8 years ago
This is the place to go to, so your child is never afraid of the dentist again. My 3 year old was laughing throughout having his cavities filled, seriously.
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