Sleep Apnea Dental Appliances Covered By Insurance

Dental/oral appliance therapy is a very effective treatment option to help patients with snoring and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). A customized and custom-fit oral dental appliance can drastically improve a patient’s sleep, improve alertness, and rejuvenate their health.

A sleep apnea dental appliance is generally worn only at night time – when the patient goes to bed. It fits and feels much like a sports mouth guard or an orthodontic retainer. The purpose of the dental appliance is to support the jaw and help keep it in a forward position – this is to help maintain an open upper airway for air to flow through without any obstruction.

If you have discussed with your sleep doctor or dentist and have both decided that dental appliance therapy is the Top treatment option for you and your symptoms – your doctor will then write a prescription for you to receive a customized and custom-made dental appliance. You will also receive a referral to a qualified dentist/sleep doctor who can provide you with oral appliance treatment. A very common question that many patients have is if dental/oral appliance therapy is covered by medical/dental insurance plans?

In many, almost all, cases – health insurance will cover all or part of the accrued costs of getting a dental appliance for treatment of sleep apnea. Granted this can vary from one insurance plan to another, or from state to state – so it is important for you to partner with your insurance provider to ask if this treatment is covered. If you don’t know how to reach them or to find out, simply call the sleep doctors at Koala® Center For Sleep & TMJ Disorders and we will work with you to figure this out together.

There are some insurance companies that will cover the full cost, while some others may cover a small part of it, and on the opposite side of the spectrum – some insurers may not cover any of the cost. No matter what, the dental/sleep doctors are here to help you. We offer many self-pay options for those who are uninsured and also offer discounts and financial options. We want to ensure that everyone who is in need to treatment, gets it in a timely manner.

While coverage of sleep apnea treatments or sleep apnea dental appliances can vary widely from one insurance provider to another – the coverage of a required sleep study is often times more consistent. The majority of insurance companies will cover a sleep study if your doctor is indicating that it is necessary for a diagnosis and treatment of a health disease. Sleep studies for sleep apnea generally meet this criteria because of the health complications that could develop if one were to go to untreated with sleep apnea.

If you’re not entirely sure where to find out what your health insurance plan covers, don’t feel bad because you’re not alone. One of the most common questions about health insurance is, “Is this covered?” To find this information out, you can look for your policy’s Summary of Benefits and Coverage letter. This is often times mailed to you or handed to you by your employer. Here’s what to look for:

– Is the device covered?
– Are there any restrictions on coverage?
– Is my doctor in-network?

Talk to our friendly staff at Koala® Center For Sleep & TMJ Disorders to find out more information.