Group Dental Insurance for Employers in San Francisco

Bring Dental Care to Your Employees



(Employer-Paid, Voluntary)

If you've been looking for a way to bring dental care to your employees but were never sure where to begin, the good news is that it's a lot easier than you might think. The major decision you have to make is whether to go with an Employer-sponsored plan or voluntary benefits. With the former, you as an employer will generally pay a majority or even all the premium for your employees each month. With the latter, the employee will pay the majority or sometimes all of the cost.

Benefits of Offering Group Dental Insurance

The number one benefit of offering group dental insurance is that you're offering something that not all other businesses offer to their employees. While many organizations take care of general health insurance, their attention can stop there. Employees are left to fend for themselves in terms of dental-related expenses, as well as for things like vision.

By offering some type of group dental insurance, you're increasing the overall quality of your benefits package and are separating yourself from your competitors at the same time. So not only will this improve morale and make your existing employees happy, but it should go a long way towards helping you attract new ones to fill available positions as well.

PPO Plans

Short for Preferred Provider Organization, PPO plans allow members to have a set amount of dollars the insurer will pay out to providers per calendar year (called “Calendar Year Maximum”). When a member goes to see the provider, the insurance carrier pays a portion of the fee out of the calendar year max, and the member pays their portion (coinsurance). 



PPO group dental insurance plans allow employees to pick from a wide number of dental providers, both in and out of network, to get the coverage they seek. The benefit of staying in network is that these dentists are contracted with your dental insurer and have lower and more predictable costs for their services.

Going out of network is available, but the amount a provider is reimbursed (and what the member’s share of the payment is) can vary widely depending on whether the insurer reimburses out-of-network providers based on a set “Fee Schedule” or if the insurer reimburses the provider based on “Usual and Customary Fees.”(i.e., What other dentists in a similar area charge for like services) 

 Dental HMO/Managed Care Plans

Health Maintenance Organizations, or HMOs, offer a cost-effective alternative to PPO plans. However, they come with a more limited provider network. Upon enrolling in a dental HMO, employees must select a primary dentist, or one will be assigned to them.

Unlike PPOs, dental HMOs don't utilize a calendar year maximum. Instead, they employ a fixed fee schedule for all services, assigning a specific dollar cost to each procedure. For example, a routine cleaning may be set at $50, a filling at $100, and an extraction at $150. It's important to note, however, that going out of network is not covered by the dental HMO.



In essence, dental HMOs offer budget-friendly options but require adherence to a specific network and operate on a set fee schedule for services, eliminating the notion of a calendar year maximum.

Build a Custom Benefits Package with AEIS

At AEIS, we understand that there's no “one size fits all” approach to group dental insurance or other benefits-related matters. Your workers are unique and their precise needs and requirements should be accounted for when putting together any package designed with them in mind.

This is why we always make an effort to learn as much as we can not only about your business, but your people – all so that we can help you build the custom benefits package you need to thrive.

If you'd like to find out more information about group dental insurance and related topics, or if you have any additional questions about employer dental plans that you'd like to discuss with someone in a bit more detail, please don't hesitate to contact AEIS today.