Anyone with a family that has had to pay for major dental costs out of their own pocket can attest to the importance of having family dental insurance or, better yet, a dental discount plan. The costs of braces, bridge work, root canals and other dental work for multiple people can really put a dent in a family budget.

Now that we've established the need for a family dental plan, the next question is "which plan is better, family dental insurance or a dental discount plan?" Let's take a look at the pro's and con's of both.

Dental Insurance - Pro's

The pro's of dental insurance is that it's the first thing that comes to mind for most people when they think of getting a dental plan. There's a certain level of comfort in the word "insurance" because we use that word so much in our everyday vocabulary with our medical insurance, car, home, etc.

Most preventive care costs are included with dental insurance, such as cleanings, ect., however, you still have to pay the deductible.

Dental Insurance - Con's

Unfortunately, this list could get really long. The first con is that legitimate dental insurance can be very expensive. There are some "cheap" plans floating around online, but I urge you to read the fine print before buying one. One way that these can be so cheap is because you could have a huge deductible. This means that if you have any major dental work that needs to be done you'll have to pay for it yourself EACH YEAR until your deductible is met. Some people are very naive and don't educate themselves in this area until it's too late and they're stuck footing the bill.

Pre-existing conditions are not covered by new insurance policies. You'll have a "waiting" period of at least a year, at which time, the policy will begin to pay a portion of the existing care costs. It could be 3-5 years before the insurance company will pick up 100% of the cost of your pre-existing problems and even then you'll still have to pay the deductible.

Dental Discount Plans - Pro's

Even though discount plans are not insurance, the benefits of the discounts that they offer far exceeds any coverage given by most insurance policies.

Pre-existing conditions are fine.

Discounts of 10-60% off routine preventive care AND major dental!

Cosmetic dentistry IS included with some plans.

Less expensive than most dental insurance policies.

No exclusions, no age limits, no paperwork, no hassles.

Over 100,000 participating dentists and dental specialists

Dental Discount Plan - Con's

You must pay a fee each year to remain a member. This is standard with ANY plan, but I'm grasping for something bad to say.

You must pay your discounted fee at the time of your appointment. This may be a pain for some people, but let me ask you this. If you were in pain and you knew that you had to have a tooth pulled, you'd find a way to come up with the money in full, right? Well, this way you only have to come up with maybe half or a little more. No problem. The evidence is right in front of you, but I advise you to check it out for yourself before you buy any type of family dental insurance.