Dental, Vision, and Hearing Insurance

Medicare recipients often find themselves underinsured when it comes to coverage for their dental, vision, and hearing health. While Medicare does provide coverage for medical conditions of the eye, it does not cover the refraction test for vision nor does it cover the cost of eyeglasses or contact lenses. Medicare does not cover most dental procedures such as cleanings, fillings, tooth extractions, dentures, or root canals. Likewise, Medicare doesn’t cover hearing exams, hearing aids, or exams for fitting hearing aids.

If these benefits are important to you, then there are options available to help cover these costs. Some Medicare Advantage plans offer dental, vision, and hearing coverage as additional benefits beyond what is provided by traditional medicare. While these benefits come with certain limits and restrictions, they can definitely help defray the cost of procedures and treatments not covered by Medicare. There are also standalone dental, vision, and hearing insurance policies available and designed to fill in the gaps left by Medicare alone. These policies may offer a discount on services obtained through their network of providers or may pay you back a portion of the cost after you file a claim. It is important to note that these policies may have a waiting period before major services can be claimed. This is done to prevent people from quickly buying a dental policy when they find out they require a more expensive procedure.