Great job offer otherwise but no vision and dental

[pennylane]

So I'm getting out of college with a degree in mechanical engineering. I got a job offer from a (small) company I'd love to work for, but their health plan doesn't offer vision or dental (it offers the standard medical junk of course).

Is this common or at least not uncommon? How much does it cost to do something like get my teeth cleaned without insurance?

I have glasses/contacts yes. My teeth are pretty good (wisdom teeth pulled, I've never had braces, 1 cavity in my life). My eyes are okay aside from the needing glasses/contacts (my prescription hasn't changed very much in like 5 years).

 

[michaels]

Is everything else good besides that? I wouldn't be too picky right out of college, plus it will be great experience.

 

[purbeast0]

mine doesn't cover vision but it covers dental. it's like $5/mo for the dental portion of mine. covers 2 free checkups per year as well as some other coverage. when I had my wisdom tooth pulled I spent I think like $70, and when I had a cavity filled I paid $30.

 

[MonkeyK]

Originally posted by: fanerman91
So I'm getting out of college with a degree in mechanical engineering. I got a job offer from a (small) company I'd love to work for, but their health plan doesn't offer vision or dental (it offers the standard medical junk of course).

Is this common or at least not uncommon? How much does it cost to do something like get my teeth cleaned without insurance?

In my experience, vision coverage is pretty rare. Dental not so much so, but you can probably get it on your own without too much difficulty.

 

[Electric Amish]

Vision is not horribly common, unfortunately. Dental is much more common.

 

[kevnich2]

If you have good teeth, dental insurance isn't worth much. Vision isn't worth much either if you have good vision. To pay out of pocket, dental visits usually run $45-$70 here and for vision, the exams are usually $45. Glasses = $150-$300 Contacts = $150. IMO, medical insurance is the biggy, that you need. Vision and dental, if you have good eyes and good teeth, it's actually more of a waste of money down the road and it's better to pay out of pocket.

 

[ScottFern]

Unfortunately its pretty common nowadays. It's not a big deal for the vision because of places like America's Best have decent rates and also unless you have messed up teeth a $100 cleaning (no insurance) should be fine anyways.

 

[fLum0x]

do you have glasses/contacts? if not, i wouldnt worry about it. Dental really isnt that significantly more as long as you dont have cavities and root canals :x

 

[Riverhound777]

I've worked two jobs out of college and they have both only offered Medical. And that was after 3 months. But I paid nothing for the medical.

 

[pennylane]

I have glasses/contacts yes. My teeth are pretty good (wisdom teeth pulled, I've never had braces, 1 cavity in my life). My eyes are okay aside from the needing glasses/contacts (my prescription hasn't changed very much in like 5 years).

 

[PepePeru]

hey, could be worse. a FT employee w/o any insurance...i.e. me.

 

[pontifex]

my company pays like full medical and partial vision. when i started they didn't offer dental but we now have a dental plan that covers most of it.

 

[Kremlar]

Dental insurance is great if your company offers it, but usually not worth getting on your own.

Take care of your teeth, and pay the dentist for his work.

 

[spidey07]

vision and dental insurance are dirt cheap. Just get them on your own. You'll wind up with better coverage anyway.

 

[Kremlar]

vision and dental insurance are dirt cheap. Just get them on your own. You'll wind up with better coverage anyway.

Are you serious about dental? Most plans I've seen for a resonable price will only cover cleanings, 80% of most non-cleanings, and have a yearly $1000 or so payout limit.

 

[AgaBoogaBoo]

I wouldn't bother with vision, you'll be tied to specific shops and honestly, most of the time it's just cheaper to find deals and/or just go into walmart to have glasses made.

 

[pontifex]

Originally posted by: AgaBoogaBoo
I wouldn't bother with vision, you'll be tied to specific shops and honestly, most of the time it's just cheaper to find deals and/or just go into walmart to have glasses made.

you know its funny, because i have vision insurance and a vision discount card. the insurance pays for the exam, but never seems to help with the actual glasses. its usually cheaper to go with the discount plan or one of their own sales or something.

unless they're lying to me....hmmm....

 

[moshquerade]

date/marry a dental hygienist and get free dental work.

 

[EKKC]

pretty common for smaller companies to save costs, thats why they passed the savings onto you for a bigger salary

think about how bad you need the benefits. i wouldn't mind at a younger age, if you have family to take care of and they need the benefits, that's another story.

 

[rsd]

Hmm this thread makes me appreciate that my company allows us to be reimbursed for up to $160 for contacts/glasses a year

 

[homercles337]

Dental is more important. I didnt have vision for a long time and get check-ups (and contacts) at Costco. Its about half relative to anywhere else if you have to pay yourself.

 

[spidey07]

Originally posted by: Kremlar

vision and dental insurance are dirt cheap. Just get them on your own. You'll wind up with better coverage anyway.

Are you serious about dental? Most plans I've seen for a resonable price will only cover cleanings, 80% of most non-cleanings, and have a yearly $1000 or so payout limit.

Well that's still pretty good.

I guess the best would be one that covers all dental work at 80%, including braces and cosmetic stuff.

 

[krunchykrome]

My job (first job out of college) offered medical, dental, and vision. I declinde dthe vision insurance just because I dont need it at this time in my life. But I would decline any job offer that didnt at least offer medical and dental. I was offered another position that paid about the same salary, but without any benefits. It was basically a no-brainer to decline that job offer.

 

[sygyzy]

Other medical junk?

I have not heard of any legitimate, self-respecting company that does not offer full benefits. What is this, Wal-Mart? How can the job be attractive?

 

[Kremlar]

Well that's still pretty good.

I think it's a terrible deal. Most of these plans cost almost $100 per month - there's usually only a tiny window in which they will actually pay off.

It's extremely rare for a reasonably priced dental plan to cover braces or cosmetic work.

I have not heard of any legitimate, self-respecting company that does not offer full benefits. What is this, Wal-Mart? How can the job be attractive?

What world do you live in? Health and dental prices are expensive. Most small companies have a hard time offering anything, and many large companies make you pay a big chunk of the cost.