Are you prepared for a dental emergency?

Thousands of dental emergencies—from injuries to a painful, abscessed tooth—take place every day. Would you know what to do if your child broke a tooth or had a tooth knocked out while playing outdoors? What if you had a bad toothache in the middle of the night and couldn’t get to the dentist until the next day? Knowing what to do can lessen the pain and save a tooth that might otherwise be lost.

Toothache: Rinse the mouth with warm water to clean it out. Gently use dental floss or an interdental cleaner to remove any food or other debris that may be caught between the teeth. Never put aspirin or any other painkiller against the gums near the aching tooth. This could burn gum tissue. If the toothache persists, try to see the dentist. Don’t rely on painkillers. They may temporarily relieve pain but your dentist should evaluate the condition.

Keep your dental office phone number and an emergency number where the dentist can be reached after hours with other emergency numbers, such as your family doctor, and fire and police departments. Some families post these numbers on the refrigerator or inside a kitchen cabinet door near the phone. Call the dentist immediately for instructions on how to handle a dental emergency.

Knocked-out (avulsed) tooth: Try to find the tooth! This may not be as easy as you think if the injury took place on a playground, basketball court or while skateboarding, so try to stay calm. Hold the tooth by the crown and rinse the root in water if the tooth is dirty. Don’t scrub it or remove any attached tissue fragments. If it’s possible, gently insert and hold the tooth in its socket while you head to the dentist. If that’s not possible, put the tooth in a cup of milk and bring it to the dentist. Time is critical for successful reimplantation, so try to get to your dentist immediately.

Broken tooth: Rinse your mouth with warm water to clean the area. Use cold compresses on the outside of the cheek to help reduce the swelling.

Tongue or lip bites or wounds: Clean the area gently with a clean cloth and apply cold compresses to reduce any swelling. If the bleeding can’t be controlled, go to a hospital emergency room or clinic. You may able to reduce bleeding from the tongue by pulling it forward and using gauze to put pressure on the wound.

Objects caught between teeth: Try to gently remove the object with dental floss. Never use a sharp instrument to remove any object that is stuck between your teeth. If you can’t dislodge the object with floss, contact your dentist.

Possible broken jaw: Apply cold compresses to control swelling. Get to the hospital emergency room immediately.

For more tips or fun activity sheets for children, visit http://www.ada.org/prof/events/featured/ncdhm.asp.

© 2010 American Dental Association (ADA). All rights reserved.
Reprinted with permission from the ADA. On the Web at: http://www.ada.org/prof/events/featured/ncdhm.asp.

Mouth Guards: Sports Equipment that Protects the Smile

It’s easy to take some things for granted until they’re suddenly gone. Have you ever thought about how it would feel if you lost one or two of your front teeth? You’d probably avoid smiling. It would be uncomfortable talking with someone face-to-face. It wouldn’t be easy pronouncing certain words. And how about eating an apple? Until your teeth are gone, you might not miss them.

Each year, thousands of teens get hurt on the playing field, the basketball court, or while skateboarding, biking or during other activities. Blows to the face in nearly every sport can injure your teeth, lips, cheeks and tongue.

A properly fitted mouth guard, or mouth protector, is an important piece of athletic gear that can protect your teeth and smile. You may have seen them used in contact sports, such as football, boxing, and ice hockey.

However, you don’t have to be on the football field to benefit from a mouth guard. New findings in sports dentistry show that even in non-contact sports such as gymnastics, rollerblading, and field hockey, mouth guards help protect teeth. Many experts recommend that a mouth guard be worn for any recreational activity that poses a risk of injury to the mouth.

There are three types of mouth guards: The ready-made, or stock, mouth guard; the mouth-formed “boil and bite” mouth guard; and the custom-made mouth guard made by your dentist. All three mouth guards provide protection but vary in comfort and cost.

The most effective mouth guard should have several features: It should be resilient, tear-resistant and comfortable. It should fit properly, be durable and easy to clean, and not restrict your speech or breathing.

Generally, a mouth guard covers only the upper teeth, but in some cases the dentist will instead make a mouth guard for the lower teeth. Your dentist can suggest the right mouth guard for you.

Here are some suggestions for taking good care of your mouth guard:

Before and after each use, rinse it with cold water or with an antiseptic mouth rinse. You can clean it with toothpaste and a toothbrush, too.

When it’s not used, place your mouth guard in a firm, perforated container. This permits air circulation and helps prevent damage.

Avoid high temperatures, such as hot water, hot surfaces or direct sunlight, which can distort the mouth guard.

Check it for tears, holes and poor fit. A mouth guard that’s torn or in bad shape can irritate your mouth and lessen the amount of protection it provides.

Have regular dental checkups and bring your mouth guard along so the dentist can make sure it’s still in good condition.

Don’t take your teeth for granted. Protect your smile with a mouth guard.

For more tips or fun activity sheets for children, visit http://www.ada.org/prof/events/featured/ncdhm.asp.

© 2010 American Dental Association (ADA). All rights reserved.
Reprinted with permission from the ADA. On the Web at: http://www.ada.org/prof/events/featured/ncdhm.asp.

Sipping, Snacking and Tooth Decay

Many parents across the country will issue a common refrain at dinnertime tonight: “You’d better eat that–it’s good for you!”

There’s another old favorite in the parental arsenal of dietary admonitions: “Don’t eat that—it’ll rot your teeth!”

Now more than ever, kids are faced with a bewildering array of food choices — from fresh produce to sugar-laden processed convenience meals and snack foods. What children eat and when they eat it may affect not only their general health but also their oral health.

Americans are consuming foods and drinks high in sugar and starches more often and in larger portions than ever before. It’s clear that junk foods and drinks gradually have replaced nutritious beverages and foods for many people. For example, the average teenage boy in the U.S. consumes 81 gallons of soft drinks each year!

Alarmingly, a steady diet of sugary foods and drinks can ruin teeth, especially among those who snack throughout the day. Common activities may contribute to the tendency toward tooth decay. These include ―grazing habitually on foods with minimal nutritional value, and frequently sipping on sugary drinks.

When sugar is consumed over and over again in large, often hidden amounts, the harmful effect on teeth can be dramatic. Sugar on teeth provides food for bacteria, which produce acid. The acid in turn can eat away the enamel on teeth.

Almost all foods have some type of sugar that cannot and should not be eliminated from our diets. Many of these foods contain important nutrients and add enjoyment to eating. But there is a risk for tooth decay from a diet high in sugars and starches. Starches can be found in everything from bread to pretzels to salad dressing, so read labels and plan carefully for a balanced, nutritious diet for you and your kids.

Reduce your children’s risk of tooth decay:

1. Sugary foods and drinks should be consumed with meals. Saliva production increases during meals and helps neutralize acid production and rinse food particles from the mouth.
2. Limit between-meal snacks. If kids crave a snack, offer them nutritious foods, like nuts, cheese and fruit.
3. If your kids chew gum, make it sugarless – Chewing sugarless gum after eating can increase saliva flow and help wash out food and decay-producing acid.
4. Monitor beverage consumption – Instead of soft drinks or sugary juice all day, children should also choose water and low-fat milk.
5. Help your children develop good brushing and flossing habits.
6. Schedule regular dental visits.

For more tips or fun activity sheets for children, visit http://www.ada.org/prof/events/featured/ncdhm.asp.

© 2010 American Dental Association (ADA). All rights reserved.
Reprinted with permission from the ADA. On the Web at: http://www.ada.org/prof/events/featured/ncdhm.asp.

February is Children’s Dental Health Month

This month is National Children’s Dental Health Month, an awareness program sponsored by the American Dental Association.  To raise awareness, BEST Life will publish articles promoting oral health for children on a weekly basis.

Federal COBRA Subsidy Extension

 President Obama has signed into the 2010 Defence Appropriations Act, which has a section that extends the federal COBRA subsidy:

• COBRA recipients whose eligibility was scheduled to end on December 31, 2009 will now be extended through February 28, 2010.
• The subsidy period was extended from 9 months to 15 months.
• Those whose subsidy ended on November 30, 2009 now have a grace period of 60 days to pay their COBRA premium.

Please be aware of two new notifications: One for plans to notify who is eligible as of October 31, 2009 or later due to subsidy changes; and a second notice to those who had lost their subsidy to let them know of their extended payment grace period.

To learn more about this extension or to download the notices, visit the the Department of Labor’s website. We have also updated our flyer All About COBRA, which explains to employers how the subsidy works. This can be downloaded here.
If you have any questions about this or any other communication, please call your BEST Life Account Manager at 800.433.0088, or contact your Agent.

The WellPoint Revelation: How the Senate’s Public Option Plan will Impact Private Insurance

Public Option Plan could triple private insurance premiums, says a new study released by the insurance company WellPoint, Inc., and as reported by the Wall Street Journal.  Unlike previous studies, WellPoint’s used its own actuarial data to model a Public Option Plan in the 14 states it currently runs plans.  The study included market and demographic differences. 

The results?  Small businesses and individuals would experience increased premiums, with young and healthy consumers seeing the largest increases.

Click here for the Wall Street Journal Article.

Health Reform Legislation Passed by Senate Finance Committee

If you haven’t heard already, the Senate Finance Committee passed health care legislation today.  The President and CEO of America’s Health Insurance Plans, Karen Ignagni, released a statement, which we have provided below.

Recent key findings from a report by PricewaterhouseCoopers has shown that if these provisions are implemented, the cost of health plans will rise more than what the trend will be under current law.

http://hosted.verticalresponse.com/306797/370c519fe7/1362001578/a43f5d2d91/

24/7 Nurse Line Service and Precertification

As any new parent can tell you, having a 4 month-old baby with a temperature of 101° at 9 o’clock at night can be downright scary when you’re not sure what to do. Your child is miserable, but does it warrant an emergency visit to the doctor?

The above and other scenarios is why BEST Life has implemented a 24/7 Nurse Line service for all medical plan members. With this new service, callers have the option of accessing an extensive health information library, speaking directly to a Registered Nurse for counseling or advice, or get information on national health care resources. Mostly it will help members decide if and when they should see a doctor.

This important service has great value for employers, too! By helping to cut back on unnecessary visits to the doctor, a Nurse Line that is actively used can help a company lower their medical costs.

Another cost-saving tool we offer is Precertification. Unnecessary or excessive medical costs are a waste that no individual or company can afford. The increasing cost of hospitalization and health care is one area that can be avoided by simply remaining alert to proper utilization.

Precertification is required on our medical plans. Most of the time, doctors will file a Precertification on a member’s behalf, but members can also call the phone number provided on the back of their ID cards to talk to a Registered Nurse and get a Precertification.

Newly enrolled members will receive a brochure about the 24/7 Nurse Line along with their medical ID Card. Other customer pieces, like check stuffers, are also available upon request.  To make a request, please call our Customer Service Department at 800.433.0088.

Important: Our Enrollment Forms Have Been Updated

In order for Medicare to properly coordinate Medicare payments with other insurance and/or workers’ compensation benefits, the Federal Government is now requiring insurance carriers to collect the Social Security Number of subscribers and their dependents.

Effective immediately, BEST Life has updated all employee enrollment forms to capture Social Security Numbers for dependents and these forms are currently posted on the BEST Life website. We are advising our clients to discard any old forms they may have and to make sure their employees use the new forms when they enroll. A notice explaining this change was sent along with our June billing statements. If you have any questions about any of the above, please contact the BEST Life Customer Service Department at (800) 433-0088.

Updated Enrollment Forms can be downloaded by visiting:

http://www.bestlife.com/forms_employers.html

Negotiating Can Help You Save on Medical Bills

Getting medical care outside of your plan’s network can be costly. However, did you know that you may be able to get those costs lowered simply by asking the hospital or your health care provider for a discount?

Doctors and hospitals can be much more eager to receive payment of a lesser amount immediately than to receive full payment for the balance owed over a long period of time.

How much can be saved? That varies according to how much doctors and hospitals are willing to discount and if they are open to a payment plan.  Just remember it never hurts to ask.

To learn more about negotiating medical bills and an explanation on how medical insurance works, download this free e-book, My Healthcare is Killing Me.

Link: http://www.myhealthcareiskillingme.com/