I do hope someone can help me. Alan is on a Medicare HMO. They have limited dental benefits. All they cover is a cleaning, and an x-ray.

Last week he bit into a Dunkin Donuts sundae and broke his tooth while biting into an M&M.

No pain, no infection, just a broken tooth. Went to see his dentist (two blocks from our house). He had referred him last week to an oral surgeon who pulled his tooth (back then he had Touchstone and he only had a $50 co-pay). Touchstone is out of business so now he has another Brooklyn based HMO.

So yesterday his dentist took an x-ray and called us in and said "Okay, here are the options Alan has. He has no infection, no pain, so option one is to do nothing, keep his teeth clean, keep brushing, don't eat any nuts, blah blah.

Second option is to have it pulled (which he didn't recommend because the tooth can be saved) (Oh, it's a canine tooth with long roots, so that's why the guy won't pull it, he can go back to the same oral surgen).

Third option is he has the root canal, post, crown which will cost $1200. which of course we do not have. He said it would be 3 visits and we could spread this out over 3 visits. We don't have this money.

I phoned the oral surgeon and asked "how much to pull a canine tooth without going to sleep, just novocaine?"

The girl said: "We start at $545". I hung up the phone.

Today, we have been on the phone trying to find a dental clinic that offers half price or SOMETHING TO HELP US.

His HMO MY ADVOCATE department gave us a program called Independence Care System which has a Dental program. Of course I got all excited.

I phoned them, explained the whole thing and she looked up his member ID and said "Oh, he belongs to a Medicare HMO", your husband would have to disenroll from that and join us". (which of course he cannot do). He has too many doctors and specialist to give up a Medicare HMO.

So yesterday I also called NYU College of Dentistry who said they are considerably cheaper than any NYC dentists but he would need an endodontist for the root canal, a proctodontist for the crown, etc. (sorry if I am getting the spelling incorrect). And this would involve going back and forth to NYC with Access a ride which is practically impossible because Alan has all these medical problems and I would have to accompany him to ALL APPOINTMENTS.

We had to stop going into NYC as of last month because we ate out at the Earl of Sandwich and we both got Food poisoning, but he got it worse, passed out in his walker in NYC, and I had to go around the corner to find the Access a ride Driver who was parked at the wrong address. I finally persuaded him to come to where Alan was and Alan was completely passed out in his walker and even slapping him in the face did not bring him around. I got some water into him (turns out that because he went to the bathroom 30 minutes before he was completely dehydrated). We got him on Access a ride, got him home, he had a fever of 101.1. He finally threw up all the food poisoning and in 3 days he was all better. I however will never take us into NYC again because I was almost stranded there that time. I can't ever take that chance.

So what I'm trying to find is a kindly compassionate dental clinic in Brooklyn NY that will give Alan a root canal, a post and a crown. And not for $1200. Who the heck has this kind of money.

We don't qualify for medicaid. Believe me I tried. They don't care how much rent you pay, they go by your income and I believe we make $200 over the limit as a married couple.

Do any of you know a Brooklyn dentist who can do this and would allow us to pay it out every month or so. I asked the dentist around the corner and he said "It doesn't work like that, this will take 3 visits and you have to pay at each visit"

So because we don't have $1200, we can't afford this guy. I have spoken to other people and they said they paid that amount or more for crowns, implants, etc, or they dental insurance (like we did last year with Touchstone). Touchstone went out of business so we got screwed.

Any and all advice is appreciated.

Right now, there is no infection, no pain, no nothing and he's not eating any crunchy stuff, no nuts, etc. (you know what I mean).

Is there nothing we can do?

Thanks for any input

Melody

HOW COME THE WORD CANAL CAME OUT AS ***** IN THE TITLE OF THIS THREAD??