Does Pet Insurance Cover Dental Care? What You Need to Know

Your pet's teeth might tug on ropes, chew through bones, and rip apart toys, but they're not indestructible. Dental injuries and illnesses are common in dogs and cats, and they can cause serious health problems if untreated. Dental care is as crucial for your four-legged friend as for you and your human family, but it's also expensive and sometimes falls outside the scope of a standard pet insurance plan.

When pet insurance does cover dental care, providers often have limitations that could leave you responsible for a bigger chunk of your vet bills than you expect. Understanding what's in your pet insurance policy will help protect the health of your four-legged friend — and your bank account.

Types of Dental Coverage in Pet Insurance

Pet insurance plans can address different kinds of dental care. Your policy might only come into play during emergencies — or it could pay for treatments for your pet every few months.

Preventative Dental Care

Routine oral care is critical to your pet's long-term health, but standard pet insurance doesn't cover dental with many policies. However, some providers allow you to purchase an add-on to your plan to help pay for preventative care, including:

• Checkups
• Cleanings
• Polishing
• X-rays

Insurance providers that don't cover routine care may still require you to keep up with regular dental cleanings to maintain your policy. These involve a veterinarian removing plaque and tartar and may sometimes require anesthesia. Providers will sometimes deny claims if a pet's condition developed because of a lack of cleanings.

Treatment-Oriented Dental Care

For many pet owners, unplanned dental treatment is the biggest concern, particularly when it's expensive. In those cases, an insurance policy can help reduce the costs of treatments and procedures such as:

• Tooth extractions
• Root canals
• Crowns
• Periodontal surgeries

Whether the provider covers your pet's dental care depends on the details of your policy. Comprehensive plans usually encompass accidents and illnesses, as well as periodontal disease and emergency dental issues. Many providers also offer accident-only plans, which pay for treatments and procedures for injuries such as tooth fractures but don't include coverage for dental disease.

Common Dental Conditions Covered by Pet Insurance

Dental coverage for pets usually focuses on care necessary due to illnesses and accidents. One of the most frequent procedures included in this kind of policy is a tooth extraction, where the veterinarian removes the tooth because of damage or decay.

Many pet dental insurance plans also include diagnosis and treatment for periodontal disease, also known as gingivitis or gum disease. This potentially painful inflammation often develops when pets don't receive routine tooth cleanings.

Major Pet Insurance Providers and Their Dental Policies

Pet insurance is available from a wide range of companies, and they take different approaches to dental coverage. Although providers typically don't allow you to purchase standalone dental care policies, they offer a variety of other options.

Embrace

Embrace's pet insurance policy covers dental illnesses and injuries, including periodontal disease, gingivitis, tooth loss, and abscessed teeth. The company will pay up to $1,000 for treatment per policy term. You can also purchase their wellness rewards add-on, which reimburses you for preventative dental cleaning costs.

Healthy Paws

The Healthy Paws pet insurance plan covers unexpected accidents and illnesses, including tooth extraction and reconstruction. Their policy also covers conditions such as dental malocclusion, stomatitis, and dentigerous cysts. They don't offer any coverage for routine care or extractions and reconstructions necessary due to dental disease.

Lemonade

If you purchase a Lemonade pet insurance plan, you automatically receive coverage for dental care related to accidents. You can customize your plan with a dental illness add-on, covering the diagnosis and treatment of dental conditions related to illness. Lemonade also offers preventative care packages for routine dental care.

Exclusions and Limitations of Pet Dental Insurance

Like insurance policies for humans, dental plans for pets aren't all-encompassing. Providers will only pay for care in specific circumstances.

Typical Exclusions

When you sign up for pet insurance, make sure to read the fine print. Every policy includes a list of exclusions, or situations where coverage doesn't apply.

Pet dental insurance policies generally don't cover cosmetic and orthodontic services, such as caps, fillings, braces, and implants. In addition, while some pet insurance does cover dental cleaning, many policies only pay for illnesses and injuries.

Another key point to remember about pet dental insurance is that nearly every policy excludes pre-existing conditions that were already present when you purchased your insurance plan. For instance, most pet insurance does cover dental extractions if they're necessary because the pet was in an accident. However, they might not pay for those procedures if the tooth decayed because the pet had a pre-existing condition, such as gingivitis.

Waiting Periods

You might also discover your insurance provider is unwilling to pay if the treatment occurs during the policy's waiting period. When you sign up for coverage, many plans require you to wait a set amount of time before your coverage begins.

These timeframes often differ by the type of coverage, your location, and the provider. For example, Embrace has a 14-day waiting period between when you purchase the plan and when dental illness coverage begins.

How To Choose the Right Pet Insurance Plan for Dental Care

Finding the best pet insurance with dental coverage is challenging. Start by assessing your pet's unique dental health needs based on their health history and breed. Some dogs, such as small breeds, are more likely to have dental issues than others. Similarly, certain kinds of cats, including Siamese and Maine coon cats, are more prone to periodontal disease than other breeds.

Once you understand the extent of your pet's potential dental problems, research different insurance plans to find a good fit. Look at the plan's cost, coverage, and exclusions. If you're struggling to narrow down your options, consider looking at user reviews or asking for recommendations from other pet owners.

Making Informed Decisions About Pet Dental Care Insurance With MoneyAtlas

Pet insurance policies are becoming increasingly popular, which means sorting through a long list of providers to find one that best meets your needs. Compare pet insurance plans with MoneyAtlas to speed up the process and help you find answers to essential questions, including whether the plan covers dental care. Our expert insights into insurance policies can help you make the right decision for your pet.