Korean Job Discussion Forums

[jjajangmyun]

I had some pain in my molars the past few days so I went to a dentist today who did an x-ray and revealed a huge frickin pool of abscess underneath one of my teeth! After going through a long but thorough explanation (in English!) about what was going on in my mouth, he quoted me at a grand total of up to W7,650,000 for all the work that needs to be done!

Here's what I need. I don't doubt what he said, as I'm sure the situation is pretty bad, but the price made me nearly hit the floor.

-4 tooth extractions (2 wisdom teeth and 2 molars) @ 150,000 each = 600,000
-2 Implants with crown (Cheapest is 1,500,000 per implant, and highest is 3,000,000) = 3,000,000 - 6,000,000
-Bonegraft (2 sides @ 500,000 each) = 1,000,000
-Scaling = 50,000
Total: Between W4,650,000 - 7,650,000

And they're pushing really hard for me to go with the expensive implants (from Sweden. They kept mentioning that...)

So, I guess the question that I have is:

Where can I find an insurance plan that will help me minimize the hurt to my wallet? I work for a hagwon that does NOT provide any health or dental insurance and when I brought it up with them, they kind of brushed it off, saying "none of the other teachers have ever needed it." So I think the only option left to me is finding some kind of private insurance plan that can help cover as much of this as humanly possible.

I could have paid the 7.6 million had I held onto the money instead of paying off student loans, but I honestly had no idea my teeth were in such crap condition. So now I'm trying to find any and all options before having to burden my parents with this. Help!

[Porksta]

I don't think any hagwon insurance covers dental. That being said, I don't think many insurance companies cover preexisting conditions.

[jjajangmyun]

that sucks. so i'm out of luck?

[tatu]

I wouldn't say you are out of luck but I would highly recommend getting a second opinion. Not sure what area you got the quote but I have heard of huge differences in prices depending on the area of Seoul or Korea you are in. Might want to try a dentist in the suburbs or smaller city...

[nathanrutledge]

[RUBRUBBURNER]

it seems to me they're trying to have you.
find another dentist.
i had one here tell me, "you're teeth are very healthy, but you have cavities in every tooth." he then pretended to fill a cavity in the tooth i came about (he barely brushed my tooth with a drill, didn't even consider anaesthetic and pasted some resin over it to make it less sensitive) and charged me a couple hundred bucks.
i went to another dentist a few weeks later and she said i didn't have a single cavity and it was evident my teeth were sensitive because i had been brushing too hard.
anyway... go see another dentist before you spend a fortune and subject yourself to all that.

[jjajangmyun]

Ok I'm def going to get another opinion.

He seemed like sucha nice guy too...

Btw the place I went to was called New York Columbia Dental in Itaewon. The doctor spoke great English.

Also insurance sounds like a no go so the best i can do is find the best dental clinic that won't overcharge me. If the sum total comes out to around 4 grand, that's definitely more manageable.

[Swampfox10mm]

She's a little bit pricey on some work, but she's so far been pretty honest about what REALLY needs to be done:

http://www.tuftsdental.net/

Get a 2nd opinion here!

[big_fella1]

The national health insurance only covers very basic dental anyway and further dental insurance is unavailable even to Koreans.

You need to shop around, I have found most medical people in Korea speak some English so don't just stick to the ones that advertise in English.

I have heard that some unregistered dentists operate for about 75% of what the registered ones charge, but I doubt they would treat a foreign customer or that you would want to go there anyway.