Office Information

12947 Northline Rd
Southgate MI, 48195

Phone:734-285-8666  |  FAX: 734-285-8618

How are appointments scheduled?

The office attempts to schedule appointments at your convenience and when time is available. However, the most requested time from parents for dental visits is usually after school. Please understand it is impossible and many times unadvisable to treat all children in the after school hours. For this reason, we do maintain guidelines as to when certain procedures can be completed and specific aged children will be seen.

Preschool children and children with special needs are seen in the morning because they are well rested and without the after school rush, we can work more slowly with them for their comfort. School aged children with a lot of work to be done should be seen in the morning for the same reason. All sedated children will be seen in the morning since sedations require an empty stomach.

Dental appointments are an excused absence. We’ll be happy to give you a school “excuse” if you request one. Missing school can be kept to a minimum when regular dental care is continued.

What if I need to cancel my child’s appointment?

Since appointed times are reserved exclusively for each patient we ask that you please notify our office 24 hours in advance of your scheduled appointment time if you are unable to keep your appointment. Other patients, who may need our care, could be scheduled if we have sufficient time to notify them. We realize that unexpected things can happen, but we ask for your assistance in this regard. Please note that there may be a no-show fee if no 24-hour cancellation is received.

Can I be with my child during dental visits?

We welcome the parent’s presence during their child’s initial visit with our office (see first visit section of this website). The dental staff and the parents should work as a team to make a child’s first visit a pleasant experience. Parents are asked to be a “passive observer” during these type of appointments so that the child is able to listen to Dr. Jody and the staff.

For all follow-up recall/cleaning appointments and all dental “work” appointments (fillings, extractions etc), our office maintains a “children only” policy…that is children independently accompany our staff and Dr. Jody for the appointment. Parents are asked to wait in the waiting area. Our office can only achieve a successful relationship with your child(ren) when the parents show that they have confidence in the dental environment.

We always do our best to keep parents informed during the dental appointment of the status of their child’s behavior. Parents therefore are very involved in the decision as to how they would like Dr. Jody to proceed with any dental appointments.

While there are two schools of thought about parents being present during dental appointments, Dr. Jody believes that the majority of the time, children are better able to cooperate without the parents present. The following are reasons why Dr. Jody’s office chooses a “children only” environment for her dental practice:

1. During dental treatment, Dr. Jody must give full attention to the child and vice versa. If a parent is in the immediate area, the child can remain distracted for their parent. Many times, the child “looks” for the parent’s and conversations therefore become a three way between the child, the parent and Dr. Jody. This can become very confusing to the child, as well as increasing the time to complete treatment, and ultimately increasing the anxiety level for the child.
2. Parents will tend to repeat or even offer commands to the child which take away the communication effectiveness of Dr. Jody. Therefore the child can feel that it is more important to listen to their parent and NOT the dentist’s instructions.
3. Often, although with the best of intentions, the presence of the parent can increase the alarm of the child which allows the child to portray himself as a “victim” and the parent as the “rescuer.” It is difficult to complete dental work with this dynamic in place.
4. Parents usually request being present due to their own personal anxieties over dental treatment. Children can sense their parent’s anxiety which in turn can increase their fear of the dental setting.

It is our intention to have the best interest of our patients for all phases of dental treatment. As a result, we do ask for your cooperation to maintain our “children only” policy as exceptions are rare. If this policy seems uncomfortable to you as a parent, realize we want our patients to grow into the best dental patients possible. It is our belief that the “children only” policy is a very effective measure to gain the confidence of each of our patients.

In addition, Dr. Jody’s office is set up as one large room with several dental chairs lined across. Children are scheduled with other children in the same room so as to have a more enjoyable social atmosphere (such as in school). Children learn by example and seeing other children getting their dental appointments completed helps convey the message that the dental office is not a scary place.

What about finances?

Payment Policy (please refer to Financial Policy Contract for more information):

All payments and insurance co-pays are due on the day of treatment. We strive to inform you of the costs prior to all appointments, however your cost could be less or more than that of the estimate. Every effort will be made to provide a treatment plan, which fits your timetable and budget, and gives your child the best possible care. We accept cash, personal checks, debit cards Visa and MasterCard.

Any accounts that become delinquent (90 days past due) will be considered for the collection process. Adding to the balance due, you will be responsible for all actual legal and court fees and/or collection fees occurred in the collection process.

What about payment arrangements?

We currently do not offer payment arrangements directly with our office. However, we do offer Care Credit, a zero to lower interest healthcare credit card, designed to help with dental financing. You may contact our office for more information or seek more information including an online application at Carecredit.com.

How is my dental insurance handled in your office?

We can bill and receive payment from most traditional dental insurances. We are also participants with Delta, BCBS of Michigan, Cigna PPO, Guardian, MetLife, Dentemax, MIChild-BCBS, MIChild Delta, and some Healthy Kids Delta Plans.

We are not participants of Medicaid or other state insurances at this time.

If you are unsure about whether we can bill your insurance, we recommend that you call your insurance company prior to scheduling an appointment.

If we have received all of your insurance information prior to the day of the appointment, we will as a courtesy file your claim for you. However, you have a secondary insurance we will only file the primary insurance unless we are participants with both your primary and secondary insurances. You are welcome to file your secondary insurance for payment directly to you.

Once we receive verification of your insurance benefits we will attempt to have the co-pay estimate prior to your visit. We will collect from you the estimated amount insurance is not expected to pay. By law your insurance company is required to pay each claim within 30 days of receipt. Your insurance company should receive each claim within days of the treatment. You are responsible for any balance on your account after 60 days, whether insurance has paid or not. We will be glad to send a refund to you if your insurance pays us.

PLEASE UNDERSTAND that we file dental insurance as a courtesy to our patients. We do not have a contract with your insurance company, only you do. We cannot be responsible for how your insurance company handles its claims or for what benefits they pay on a claim. We can only assist you in estimating your portion of the cost of treatment based on what information the insurance gives us. We at no time guarantee what your insurance will or will not do with each claim

Fact 1 - NO INSURANCE PAYS 100% OF ALL PROCEDURES
Dental insurance is meant to be an aid in receiving dental care. Many patients think that their insurance pays 90%-100% of all dental fees. This is not true! Most plans only pay between 50%-80% of the average total fee. Some pay more, some pay less. The percentage paid is usually determined by how much you or your employer has paid for coverage, or the type of contract your employer has set up with the insurance company.

Fact 2 - BENEFITS ARE NOT DETERMINED BY OUR OFFICE
You may have noticed that sometimes your dental insurer reimburses you or the dentist at a lower rate than the dentist's actual fee. Frequently, insurance companies state that the reimbursement was reduced because your dentist's fee has exceeded the usual, customary, or reasonable fee ("UCR") used by the company.

A statement such as this gives the impression that any fee greater than the amount paid by the insurance company is unreasonable, or well above what most dentists in the area charge for a certain service. This can be very misleading and simply is not accurate.

Insurance companies set their own schedules, and each company uses a different set of fees they consider allowable. These allowable fees may vary widely, because each company collects fee information from claims it processes. The insurance company then takes this data and arbitrarily chooses a level they call the "allowable" UCR Fee. Frequently, this data can be three to five years old and the insurance company sets these “allowable” fees so they can make a net 20%-30% profit.

Unfortunately, insurance companies imply that your dentist is "overcharging", rather than say that they are "underpaying", or that their benefits are low. In general, the less expensive insurance policy will use a lower usual, customary, or reasonable (UCR) figure.

Fact 3 - DEDUCTIBLES & CO-PAYMENTS MUST BE CONSIDERED
When estimating dental benefits, deductibles and percentages must be considered. To illustrate, assume the fee for service is $150.00. Assuming that the insurance company allows $150.00 as its usual and customary (UCR) fee, we can figure out what benefits will be paid. First a deductible (paid by you), on average $50, is subtracted, leaving $100.00. The plan then pays 80% for this particular procedure. The insurance company will then pay 80% of $100.00, or $80.00. Out of a $150.00 fee they will pay an estimated $80.00 leaving a remaining portion of $70.00 (to be paid by the patient). Of course, if the UCR is less than $150.00 or your plan pays only at 50% then the insurance benefits will also be significantly less.

MOST IMPORTANTLY, you should make yourself familiar with your insurance and its benefits. In addition, please keep us informed of any insurance changes such as policy name, insurance company address, or a change of employment.

Questions About Dental Services in Southgate, MI

We encourage you to contact us whenever you have an interest or concern about dentistry procedures such as porcelain veneers, dental implants and tooth whitening in Southgate.

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