SPRINGFIELD –To ensure dental patients do not have to pay the bill for their visits out of pocket until their claim is processed, State Senator Javier Cervantes is working on legislation that would require insurance to cover visits immediately.

“Patients should not have to worry about a shelling out a majority of their paycheck from visiting a dentist when they have dental insurance,” said Cervantes (D-Chicago). “Thanks to this measure, their visits will be automatically paid by insurance, without making patients go through the reimbursement process.”

Without this legislation, dental insurance carriers would only be required to cover the cost of the visit—but it is unspecified if they need to pay the providers directly, or just reimburse the patient for their visit. This means many insurance plans do not immediately pay for a patient’s treatment, and leave them to cover the bill after the visit, only to reimburse them months later.

To reduce the financial burden this places on patients, Senate Bill 1392 would require insurance companies to send payments directly to dental providers when the patient requests.

“If someone has dental insurance, they can be unprepared to foot an expensive bill when they go to a regular visit, and find themselves in serious financial trouble for a procedure that should be covered,” said Cervantes. 

Senate Bill 1392 passed the Senate Friday. It goes to the House of Representatives for further consideration.