My neurologist had written me a script to have a night guard type device made to keep my jaws from being able to move durring the night while I slept (because I grit my teeth in my sleep, and this was causing severe headaches, and also causing my teeth to wear down). While living a Tampa, I had used the Coast Dental location in Brandon, so when I moved to south Lakeland, and saw they also had a location there, I thought I would just give this location a try, since they were on my company's insurance plan. I explaned that I had the script from my doctor, and exactly what I needed to the receptionist on the telephone when I set up my first appointment.
Well, at that first appointment, they did x-rays, and took impressions of my teeth, to fit me for the device. They also told me that they would need to set me up for a "Deep Cleaning" which was the flouride rinse, and a therapy instrument (electric toothbrush, for which I refused.
I paid them $165.00 that day, and they told me that they would be filing the paperwork with Blue Cross/Blue Shield (my insurance company at the time) and that I sould get some of that money back from the insurance company. I had to return a week later to pick up the device, and have it fitted. Well, this device, was a piece of rubber that fit over my top teeth only, and they proceeded to tell me they didn't even have a case to put the thing in, so I had to wear it home. Once my doctor saw the thing, he laughed, and said how do they think this was what he had written the script for, there was no way this piece of rubber would keep my jaws from moving durring sleep. I returned to Coast Dental and explained that this wasn't what the doctor wanted.
They said that I was stuck with it, and by the way my insurance company wouldn't pay for it, because it wasn't the correct device. So, now I am stuck with this rubber piece of crap that is of no use to me at all. That's not the best part, they had the nerve to bill me an additional $300.00 for the thing, since the insurance company didn't pay.
I've called them, and they say that I am responsible since I signed the paperwork allowing them to make the device. I have no intentions to pay them any more money, so they keep seding me bills, and I keep putting them through the shreader machine. I am sure that one of these days, they will turn it over to a collections or something, and it will threaten to hurt my credit. So, I do need to talk to an attorney I guess to see if I can do anything about it, and maybe even make them take the worthless thing back and maybe even get a refund of what I have already paid.
I have since started going to another dentist in the area which I really like, and I found out from his office, that Coast also did't disclose serious problems to me which were in the x-rays I had them to forward to the new dentist. I had bone deteration in my jaws which was caused from peridontal disease, as well as my teeth grinding, and they failed to tell me this, I guess because I would need to go to a specialist for treatment, and they wouldn't be able to try to get me to come back for their "Deep Cleaning" program at the $1200.00 fee for which they were trying to talk me into.
I am sorry this was so long, but I hope it will help someone to not make the same mistakes I did.
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