Garage & Basement Dentist - Good or Bad?

a reply to: rickymouse

There was time in history when you could go to the barbershop get a haircut and get your teeth done too.

How it works now basically is if you don't have insurance or the money up front, no Dentist will take you. If you have something bad like an abscess, they still won't take you so you go to the ER. The ER gives you a prescription for antibiotics and maybe enough pain killers for one day. They they wish you well as you walk out the door and they get ready to mail you a bill for far more than the Dentist bill would have been. You still have an abscessed tooth and still no Dentist will see you unless you can pay in full at the time of the appointment. Then a few days later it's back to the ER, only now it's really bad and then you run up a huge hospital bill.

Lot's of working people are stuck in this crazy loop, so I'm not entirely against a gray market Dentist to help people out.

My current Dentist makes more than twice what the surgeon who saved my life a couple of years ago makes. I've had that conversation with both of them. My Dentist within a few years of opening his practice bought multiple businesses and rental properties, not to mention the annual extravagant vacations he takes with his Dental Hygienist wife. He makes far more than most surgeons and specialists.

My old dentist in Idaho before I moved up here was the richest person in our area which had a population of about 100,000. He worked 2 1/2 days a week, but his people were there for teeth cleaning full time. They worked on commission and did well also. Built the most expensive home in the whole county just before I moved to Alaska. I'll bet he owned half the commercial properties in the area and had at that time three kids in Ivy League Universities he was paying for. He complained about that every time I went to him.

Parents; hope your kids grow up to be Dentists.

a reply to: JAGStorm

The best dentist I ever went to had the most shady looking practice and office. I was in Los Angeles and had to get a root canal, and I had no idea where to go. So of course I went for the cheapest one. Small dirty building with bars on the windows, empty waiting room, no assistants. I thought I was a goner for sure. But it ended up being so completely painless that he didn't even prescribe any pain medication afterwards. It was actually the best experience I've ever had at the dentist.

But this guy was licensed and was a graduate of UCLA, and not some guy doing amateur oral surgery out of his basement. Amateur surgery isn't something you want to pay for.

a reply to: JAGStorm

I had a wisdom tooth removed 12 years ago. Cost me 195 bucks. Went in few months back to have another wisdom tooth removed, not impacted like first one was, and they wanted almost 800

a reply to: Blaine91555

My daughter was getting oral surgery a few years ago. It wasn't much with insurance.
There was an old guy in there paying cash, no joke they wanted 5K up front.
I couldn't believe it.

Basement Dentist sounds like a good business. I just got some new 5/8"" Hilti bits to start me off. Ill only have to rinse off the concrete and stone dust and they'll do double duty on molars.

a reply to: JAGStorm


Is this becoming the new trend?

www.mlive.com...

Michigan man accused of operating illegal dentist office in his basement

lol. Who knew the Dental world had such a seedy underbelly.

What is it with composite fillings.

I have had a number done over the years and everyone of them have fallen out with in three years.

Now i just fill the hole left by the composite fillings with superglue gel and have found it last longer then the composite fillings.

I used to go to Juarez for dental work but it's to risky now. Round trip to Costa Rica is $263 and the dentist picks you up at the airport and takes you to your hotel after the procedure. Next day, beach, fishin and Imperial. All that cheaper than a dental appointment in the US.

If he has nitrous, I'm there.

originally posted by: Phage
If he has nitrous, I'm there.

He has two cans of Reddi-Whip which has an added bonus after anesthesia.

a reply to: pteridine

Brilliant.

Redneck dentistry.
What's he use that roll of duct tape for?

I see two issues here brought up by this article and will adress both.

first is the issue of it being a "basement dentist".
Now I admit medical proceedures of any kind should have some regulation and standards for training.
but in todays world there is a hypocricy in the medical field.
they claim you need to train and go though all certifications from day one even though you may have been an excelent doctor, dentist, ect in another country.
but then (as I have personally seen) when you go to an "approved" medical facility most of the time almost all of the practical work is done by a Physicians assistant, a nurse, a specialist (like those that take blood samples) , nurse practitioner, a dental tech, ect. then the doctor / dentist comes in, sees the chart and what the person before did, says a few words to you and approves basically what they said/did.
Alot of proceedures are not even done in hospitals but "out patient". In essence a clean equipped , "certified" building, basement, ect.
Lets presume this guy knew what he was doing, had appropriate equipment kept everything clean and was trained.
but he didnt join the correct group, pay the appropriate agency (that basically maybe sees them once a year max) , and high paid rent. But did good work. Whats the problem.

I have gone to "shade tree mechanics", private tradesman (plumbers, electricians, ect), barber and other things where they were "not certified" or with (pick your alphabet organization) and gotten superior service without the extra expense.
Yes I know it isnt medical but as I stated before if they know what they are doing and I accept it whats the harm?

the second issue is why are costs so expensive that people resort to this?

well you can use the "malparactice insurance", training, school debts, deadbeats (there is some truth in this) and/or insurance driving up costs.

but the REAL REASON is much simpler.

There is NO OPEN PRICING FOR COMPETITION OR COMPETITIVE SHOPPING.

You cant ask doctor A what they charge and then check what doctor B charges and make a decision.
the doctors/medical facilities know they are not in competition (with maybe execption of insurance companies) with anyone and can charge what they want.

If they had to PUBLISH their "prices" and people could shop around they then would have to be competitive with service AND price.

Now before someone goes "medical science isnt like car repair" I would beg to differ in this respect.
Yes there can be complications in medicine that makes the proceedure more intense, more stuff needed ect.
but so is car repair.
they quote you a price but if they find something else when they open it up it will cost more.

so why is it you cant get a general price with caviat that if they find something more this would be the cost .

but in either case alot in medicine (be doctors or dentists) is standard. A filling with novicane is a filling with novicane.
setting a bone with cast is setting a bone with cast., ect ect ect.

in short if we had REASONABLE REGULATIONS, REASONABLE licencing , and REASONABLE cerification (to include training from other countries) along with UP FRONT PRICING costs would inevitably come down.

Scrounger

originally posted by: Phage
a reply to: pteridine

Brilliant.

Redneck dentistry.
What's he use that roll of duct tape for?

It's for the Complaint Department.

originally posted by: JAGStorm
a reply to: mysterioustranger

Here is the story from the basement one!

www.freep.com...

It actually looks like a legit setup.

I'm lucky, I have very good dental insurance, so I don't have to worry about these things, but I wonder about people that don't. I don't think it is really poor people because they are probably covered, so these people must be serving the working poor and lower middle class.

Thanks...one day when I no longer have ties to the city, county, and DHS Sec. Clearance...I'm gonna write a book for sure. But....I'm gonna jump the fence anyway for a couple things.

60%+ Muslim city here and something all should put in perspective:

*They have no intention of changing or assimilating into our culture...
*They have dr.'s as well who will come to the house for surgery, paid under the table...
*They love Walmart but will mostly shop at Arab grocery stores, deal only with people who speak their languages...
*We give them driver licenses, but many have never gone to school, nor can read English on our signs...
*Don't stop for any stop sign, don't use blinkers, cross 4 lanes of traffic to illegally turn the opposite way...
*Pedestrians in crosswalks don't matter...they honk at them to get outta the way...
*Drive the wrong way, go thru red lights...
*Do not pull over for me...police, emergency vehicles-sirens blaring lights flashing...they pay no attention...

In my 8-10 hr shift...I'm nearly killed at least a couple times everyday.

So...the dentist story doesn't surprise me...3/4 are here for the $$, the benefits...and live each day with their own...

All this is cool...but when you are driving a car load of kids thru alleys cause you never drove a car in your country, have no license, no insurance...and they switch car plates from car to car to car...?

I have many m.eastern friends...I respect them for wanting a better life...and many go to school and try real hard.

The Sharia culture is real...even insideously rt in front of you. So, don't be mistaken: the majority have no intention of ever assimilating into our culture.

I've said enough now...but one day...I'm gonna lay it out...all out. This dentist in the basement is the tip of the iceberg...

M.S.

It should be legal. Dental surgery should not be done by just anyone but simple procedures like making false teeth and spackling teeth is not a big deal.

What a joke it is to ban stores from selling permanent tooth filling.

a reply to: scrounger

to answer your question, "the second issue is why are costs so expensive that people resort to this? ". while things like needed malpractice insurance play their part. the real and most prominent reason for such prices throughout the medical industry, is the fact that since insurance companies have been willing to pay such prices, said prices of course go up. just as the maxim for business "charge what the market will bear" states. in other words the real issue IS people having medical insurance. if there had been no insurance, people would have to be able to afford it, and thus prices would actually be affordable.

and when people can not access needed things such as medical or dental help, of course the black market will step in to provide said services. and pretty much the only way to fix the problem is what i have heard only ONE politician say needs to be done to deal with it. not things like socialized medicine, or forcing everyone to buy insurance. but as Trump said in the State of the Union Address, congress and the government need to work on dealing with the prices of medical care. to actually LOWER the prices into the realm of affordability.

i am serious the prices for anything to do with health is grossly over priced. as a perfect example of out of control and quite literally INSANE prices, i have a close relative that just had to be put onto medication to deal with a medical issue. the main medication they now need to take is costing just under [color red]THREE MILLION DOLLARS A YEAR[/color red] [i] (and this will be for life, although i'm sure the price will actually increase every so often). and then on top of that they also need to carry three eppypen type medications, that cost TWENTY THOUSAND DOLLARS each, to be used as needed. now there is absolutely no way that without insurance that anyone, except for the very richest 1% of the 1% could even think about paying that. even if they were to win a lottery, chances are they would still not be able to pay for even a year of this medication. and just so you know this $3,000,000 or so a year, just for this one of several prescription medications they need is being paid directly by the tax payer since they are on the government medical plan. and people wonder why the mandated Obamacare priced medical insurance out of affordability. well just how many people's insurance premiums would it take just to cover this one medication, for this one person alone? but we have to ask ourselves just how the pharmaceutical industry have been allowed to charge so much for a drug? seriously even if the medication were made from pure gold, diamonds, titanium ect, it still would not cost anywhere that much to make. and yet because the government, and insurance companies have allowed such insane prices to be charged, one person alone is taking that $3 million a year. just think of what al that $3 million could buy and do for the country. and just how many others are there taking medications paid for with TAX MONEY that quite literally cost millions of dollars a year each? are we talking about BILLIONS of dollars a year paid to pharmaceutical companies for just a very few people?