Medicare & Dental Surgery: What's Covered & What's Not

Medicare is a federal program that provides health insurance coverage for the elderly and disabled. A study conducted by the University at Buffalo's School of Dental Medicine found that more than half of the senior citizens surveyed reported cost as a barrier to receiving dental care. Medicare coverage for dental surgery would help to ease that burden.

Medicare Part A

• Medicare Part A covers inpatient hospital care. With very few exceptions, it does not cover dental surgery.

Medicare Part B

• Medicare Part B covers outpatient medical care, like visits to a doctor's office and outpatient tests. With very few exceptions, it does not cover dental surgery. It covers no routine dental care, like cleanings or fillings.

Exceptions

• Medicare Part A or B will cover dental surgery in a few rare instances. For instance, Medicare covers surgery to extract teeth to prepare the jaw for radiation treatments. Medicare also covers dental surgery if it is a necessary part of other treatment, such as surgery to repair a fractured jaw.

Medicare Part C

• Medicare Part C includes a number of Medicare Advantage Plans that Medicare recipients may choose to sign up. Some of these plans cover dental surgery and other dental care.

For More Information

• If you need dental surgery and want to know if it is covered by Medicare, call the Medicare help line at 800-MEDICARE (800-633-4227) for more information. If you have a Medicare Advantage plan, call the number on your insurance card.