It's like pulling teeth

November 7, 2009 7:12 AM

How much does it cost to get wisdom teeth removed these days with no insurance?

My brother who lives just north of the Bay area needs to get them removed. He got a quote for 3,000 dollars (!), which seems pretty high. I think he needs to get all four teeth removed. We live in North Carolina, so he could get them done here though over Christmas break or something. Does anybody know what the range is these days? 3Gs seems pretty high for some teeth no one will even miss.

posted by Rocket26 to health & fitness (32 comments total)

Bay area meaning San Francisco?

Presumably there are a number of dental schools in that area. Call them up and ask if they have clinics (I know the ones in NYC do) and ask them this question. Their prices are likely less than those of a full-fledged dentist's office.

If your brother is concerned about having a dental student as opposed to a full dentist pull his wisdom teeth have your brother ask whomever he speaks with how the dental students are supervised.

Etc.
posted by dfriedman at 7:16 AM on November 7

A friend of mine got them done for $200/tooth. That's in South Korea, mind you, but still. For $3000, you could get a roundtrip ticket, get them done, stay a week, and pay for your hotel.
posted by smorange at 7:21 AM on November 7

More than you can afford. In Atlanta, 3g would be a steal. Here, I think the lowest I've seen was 9g for all 4, non impacted.
posted by strixus at 7:22 AM on November 7

9,000 Dollars? I got mine done 5 or 6 years ago for less than 2,000, so that seems crazy.
posted by Rocket26 at 7:26 AM on November 7

In the Atlanta area - I had 2 removed last October for $500.00
posted by pamspanda at 7:27 AM on November 7

I got a quote in Canada recently for about $1000 for all 4, non-impacted, no complications. I am not sure about the anesthetic details for my quote.
posted by bread-eater at 7:27 AM on November 7

I think mine were no more than $1000 before insurance reimbursement. Two of my teeth were impacted and and two had grown in normally, but I had all four removed. My bill was itemized and they did charge more for the impacted teeth. One thing that may make a difference is sedation: I requested a local anesthetic only. My oral surgeon said that full anesthesia (which he did not recommend for me) was a substantially pricier procedure.
posted by serathen at 7:28 AM on November 7

Seek out a dental school. I just got mine out less than a month ago, for about $100/tooth, plus $200 for sedation (the other option was something like $60 for general anesthesia).
posted by raztaj at 7:31 AM on November 7

I had an extraction (not wisdom tooth, no complications) a couple of years ago. IIRC, full retail on it was in the mid-hundreds. $3000 does sound slightly high to me.

I could see where the price could vary depending on how complicated it would be to dig them out. Adding things like gas or general anesthesia can change the price, too.
posted by gimonca at 7:32 AM on November 7

** that should be local anesthesia, not general
posted by raztaj at 7:33 AM on November 7

I had three removed about two years ago. The oral surgeon billed my insurance about $1200 (I think). I believe it was $200-300 per tooth and then several hundred for the anesthesia. Since I had insurance, I didn't haggle over the price or discuss a payment plan, but my understanding is that many medical offices are willing to work out either a lower price or payment plan when an individual is uninsured because they know that way they'll get paid rather than having to send a bill (albeit for a higher amount) to collections.
posted by Meg_Murry at 7:37 AM on November 7

Yeah, sorry, forgot to mention that was TOTAL, between two procedures (no one would do all 4 in one go), with local and antibiotics.

Of course, most dentists take a look at my records and run screaming, so I have a feeling the 9g was a "GTFO of our office, you're a risk"
posted by strixus at 7:38 AM on November 7

Not sure exactly how much they were, but when I got two of my upper wisdom teeth removed, they were non-impacted so my dentist only charged me for a routine extraction. I'm sure that impacted or otherwise difficult to remove wisdom teeth would be priced accordingly.
posted by ThaBombShelterSmith at 7:45 AM on November 7

My husband got his removed earlier this year for about $1800 before insurance, but three of the four were impacted. It's cheaper if the teeth are all simple extractions, though.

Oh, we're in the Midwest.
posted by oh really at 7:56 AM on November 7

In DC, the going rate seems to be $350-400 per tooth, plus $400 for anesthesia and $200 for x-rays / consultation.
posted by charmcityblues at 7:57 AM on November 7

I had 2 removed in Chicago 8 years ago for around $400 total.
posted by applemeat at 8:03 AM on November 7

I had all 4 removed about 6 months ago. I think 2 were slightly impacted and the other two were not. I had general anesthesia, and it was $1600-1800 total, 3/5 of which my insurance covered. This is in Milwaukee, for reference.
posted by Slinga at 8:10 AM on November 7

I got mine done, in North Caroline, for four non-impacted teeth, for $250 per tooth. So $1000. His must be impacted or something, because that does seem really high.
posted by greta simone at 8:26 AM on November 7

Mine were done in NC a couple years ago for exactly $3,000 (insurance paid half, so still pretty expensive). But one of the teeth was sideways/impacted. Looks like a lot of the cost depends on what kind of shape your teeth are in.
posted by wundermint at 8:49 AM on November 7

On second thought, it might have been more like $1500 for me. It was last year and I don't have the bill handy to check.
posted by serathen at 8:54 AM on November 7

I wholly endorse the dental school idea. When I lived in Chicago and when to UIC, I went to their dental school and had the whole thing handled - with plenty of anesthesia/sedation - for a very reasonable sum (if I recall, maybe $500, which included anesthesia). The oral surgery resident was supervised by a bona fide attending physician (that is to say, it's not a 1st year dental student hacking away at you). I'd definitely look for that type of arrangement, if possible.
posted by scblackman at 8:55 AM on November 7

If there are any drug study places in your area, a lot of them will pay you to do wisdom teeth extraction.
posted by ishotjr at 9:02 AM on November 7

Cost me about $1400 in Canada for four, including sedation which was about $300 on its own.
posted by furtive at 9:42 AM on November 7

3k is ridiculously high. I had mine pulled a year ago for $600 with the sleep IV.
posted by Sufi at 9:50 AM on November 7

In Los Angeles I was quoted about $3k.
posted by Nattie at 10:28 AM on November 7

Try to find a University/Dental school. Dental students will do this supervised by professors.

Besides the bad reputation (WHAT? STUDENTS?) the treatment is first class for a fraction of the price. I went there even when I had dental insurance.

Minus point: The treatment may take longer, may need more appointments than with a "professional" dentist.
posted by yoyo_nyc at 10:32 AM on November 7

2 non-impacted uppers this summer in Berkeley CA, by very nice oral surgeon for $1058. X-ray on first appointment, then teeth removed on second with the works--knocked out, calmed down and pain managed. It took less than an hour.
posted by tula at 10:56 AM on November 7

I paid $800 to get all 4 removed (no weird issues or anything though, just straight up yanking) with nitrous in 2005 in Williamsport, PA.

(Being a student, I paid with a check and they actually called the bank to verify the funds were there before getting me in the chair.)
posted by sperose at 11:26 AM on November 7

Check out the Healthcare Blue Book.
posted by handabear at 11:42 AM on November 7 [1 favorite]

Call around and get quotes from lots of oral surgeons. While the actual price depends on the exact situation in his mouth, this is way easier than pricing out hospital treatments. The receptionists at each office can give you a good idea of what kind of cost to expect. Prices, as you can see here, vary dramatically.

Whatever you do, I highly recommend that he spring for the anesthesia needed to put him out, especially with getting all four teeth pulled. I was sitting in the chair, chatting with the oral surgeon when I joked, "I don't think this conversation is going to last much longer." He chuckled and that's the last thing I remember before waking up in the recovery room. In fact, I was out so much that I blacked out while walking up the back stairs at home (a ~10 minute drive away), but in any case, it is very much worth it to not be awake for this procedure, even if he's not ordinarily squeamish about dental work. Perhaps the anesthesia can be his Christmas present?

Dean Duncan in San Francisco did mine a couple years ago. He was great. I can't speak for his charges, but I would add him to my list of surgeons to consider.
posted by zachlipton at 11:45 AM on November 7

In 2003 I got mine removed--local anesthetic only, not impacted--for $300. I got another tooth removed at a dental school last winter for, I think, $70. These days, because I'm broke, I get all my dental needs taken care of at the Berkeley Free Clinic. It's free, and though I don't think they do extractions, they'll provide you with referrals for places that do free/sliding scale/low income dental work if you call 'em.
posted by soviet sleepover at 1:38 PM on November 7

I'm getting mine removed by my local dental school in 2 weeks for $79 per tooth which included anesthetic. So if he can wait a little bit call a dental school - it's so much cheaper!
posted by Arbac at 2:41 PM on November 7