Bupa says its customers have saved more than $18 million in out-of-pocket dental costs in the six months since it launched a new gap-free dental scheme.
According to the insurer, analysis of data since it launched its Members First Platinum dental network has revealed more than 410,000 members have accessed the relevant benefits and received more than 1.7 million common dental preventative services, including mouthguards and x-rays, with no out-of-pocket costs.
“When people go to a dentist there’s normally two questions; how much will it hurt and how much will it cost? This removes one of those worries,” said managing director of Bupa Health Insurance, Dr Dwayne Crombie.
"We’ve actually had customers contact us after a dentist visit, surprised that there was nothing for them to pay. It shows when health insurers and care providers work together they can deliver real value for money and delight customers.
“We’ve had gap-free dental for children since 2006 and saved our customers more than $21 million in 2018 in out of pocket costs through that initiative. It’s great that so many members have also embraced our Members First Platinum offer since we introduced it last year.
“As a health insurer we’ve seen the impact of cost of living pressures and concern around increasing premiums. We need to continue to have innovative models of care, to play a role in getting a decent outcome for our members and demonstrate the importance of private healthcare in Australia,” said Dr Crombie.
The Member First Platinum network was launched in September 2018 and now includes almost 900 dental clinics nationwide. Dentists who are part of the network agree to deliver certain services at no additional charge to Bupa customers in return for a higher payment from the insurer.