Your
First Visit

We Make It Easy

Going to the dentist can be an overwhelming experience, especially for your first-time visit. Let us put your concerns and anxieties to rest. Our goal is to make the patient experience comfortable. Your emotional and physical well-being is our top priority and we strive to make it fun for you, as well as rewarding and safe.

From our downloadable patient medical history form to our massaging chairs, you'll find Gracepoint Family Dentistry is a comfortable, inviting environment. Contact us today to schedule your appointment.

A High Standard of Care

Our goal is to provide every patient with a standard of care:

A clean, relaxing and comfortable environment
A warm, friendly greeting when you call or visit us
Doctors and staff that treat you with respect
Quality, affordable dental care for you and your family
A clear explanation of every aspect of your appointment
Our sincere appreciation for choosing and recommending this office

What to Expect

The dentist will perform a complete examination and discuss any treatment you may need. An examination includes:

Head and neck exam
Intra-oral soft tissue exam
Oral cancer exam
Dental exam to check for tooth decay or other tooth pathology
Periodontal exam to check the health of your gum and bone

Teeth cleaning may be performed during your first visit or scheduled for a follow-up visit, depending on the condition of your teeth and gums.

Your first appointment will take between 1–1½ hours. Patients under the age of 18 must be accompanied by a parent.

What to Bring

To make your visit as pleasant and brief as possible, there are a few things you should bring with you:

A government-issued photo ID
Your dental insurance card
Your completed patient medical history form — download it with the button above

If you've had dental x-rays in the last six months, please bring them to your first appointment. If you do not have them, new x-rays will be taken.

With a few simple forms, we’ll ask for relevant medical history, any medications you might be taking, your dental history, and any dental insurance coverage you may have. To get a head start on the paperwork, please use the button above to download our patient medical history form. Then print it out, fill it in, and bring it with you.

Office Policies

Broken Appointments

When we make your appointment, we are reserving the time and the room for your unique treatment needs. If you must change an appointment, we ask that you give us at least 24-hour notice (1 business day). This courtesy makes it possible to give your reserved time and room to another patient.

There is a charge for not showing up for scheduled appointments. Repeated cancellations or missed appointments will result in loss of future appointment privileges.

Your time is important and valuable to us. When your appointment is made, we prepare the room, ready your records and prepare any special instruments for your visit. Aside from emergency treatment for another patient, you can expect us to be prompt. We would appreciate the same courtesy from you.

Dental Insurance Payments

Payment of your estimated portion is due at the time services are rendered, such as your annual deductible and / or percentage of the treatment not covered by insurance. As a courtesy, we will gladly contact your insurance in order to provide an estimate of your patient portion. However, we cannot guarantee the payment of insurance benefits, nor can we provide 100% accuracy of this estimated amount since many factors are involved that determine these costs. Keep in mind that many insurance companies base their quoted percentage of coverage (i.e. 100%, 80%, 50%, etc.) on their own fee schedule, which may result in a balance due higher than expected. Should an outstanding balance due result after your insurance company processes your claim, you will then be sent a statement. Payment in full is due by the date printed on the statement. Our policy does not allow partial payments. If a credit balance should result after insurance processes your claim, a refund should be issued to you.

Unpaid Insurance Claims

All dental services rendered, whether or not covered by insurance, are ultimately the financial responsibility of the patient. We give your insurance company 60 days to remit payment. If there is still no payment after this time, in order to keep your account current, you will be financially responsible for 100% of the outstanding insurance claim. A statement will be sent to you, and payment in full will be due on the date printed on the statement. It is the responsibility of the account holder to follow up with their own insurance company regarding the non-payment of a claim. Should our office eventually receive a payment from your insurance after it has been paid by you, a refund will be issued.

Patients Without Dental Insurance

Payment in full is expected at the time services are rendered. We accept cash, check, VISA, and MasterCard. If payment is made with cash or check, a 5% discount and 10% senior discount are provided. We are unable to provide this discount if payment is made with a credit card.

Dental Insurance: What You Need to Know

Dental insurance isn’t technically insurance (a payment to cover the cost of a loss) at all. It is actually a money benefit, usually provided by an employer, to assist their employees in paying for routine dental treatment. An employer buys the plan based on the amount of the benefit and how much the premium costs each month. Most plans are designed to just cover a portion of the total cost. Even if your plan says that it will cover some procedures completely, this is rarely the case.

The complete coverage they refer to is usually just what the carrier allows as total payment toward a procedure, not what any dentist may actually charge. The amount that will be paid is based on what your employer has negotiated as a benefit for you; it is tied more to the premium being paid to the insurance carrier rather than actual the fee for the service you need. Because of this, most patients find that there will be an amount that insurance doesn’t cover, even when they say they are paying 100%. That amount will be your responsibility.

Most insurance plans specify how many of certain types of procedures they will cover annually. These include cleanings, periodontal (gum and bone) treatments, x-rays, and exams, as these are the types of services that many people regularly need. Since these procedures are the ones most “in demand,” the carrier limits how many they will cover. If they did not limit coverage of these procedures, the employer’s premiums would be much higher.

There are some benefit plans that require a person to select a dentist from a specific list. Usually these dentists have also agreed to a contract with the benefit plan, though these contracts have restrictions and requirements. If you choose a dentist from this list, you may pay less toward your dental care than if you choose a dentist not on the list. However, if a dentist is not on a list, this does not mean that something is wrong with the dentist or the office. It may simply mean that the dentist is not comfortable with the plan’s restrictions.

If you are wondering about your insurance coverage, a good place to start is the Employee Benefits Coordinator where you work. If you are unhappy with your insurance, or if you feel you are not getting the proper benefits, this is the best person to go to with your concerns. Most employers want their employees to receive the benefits for which they are paying. If the insurance is not paying correctly, they want to know.

Whether your insurance plan pays a little or a lot toward your dental treatment, it helps. However, do not let your benefit plan tell you what treatment you should have. Your dentist has the responsibility of recommending treatment you need, and your insurance plan has the responsibility of limiting payments.