Dental Coverage for Washington County Families
Akron anchors Washington County on Colorado's northeastern plains, a sparse agricultural community of dryland farmers and small-town residents who typically buy dental coverage on their own.
For a family, the rules differ for the kids and the parents. Under the ACA, dental care is an essential health benefit for children but not for adults. In Washington County that means choosing a health plan on Connect for Health Colorado first and treating adult dental as its own purchase.
Adult Dental vs. Pediatric Dental in Washington County
Children and adults are treated differently: a Marketplace health plan must make dental coverage available for children 18 and under, in the plan itself or as a separate dental plan, while adult dental is optional. Check what your Connect for Health Colorado plan already includes for the children before you buy a separate plan for them.
Family plans put everyone on one policy but keep the benefits per person. On SecureDental PLUS, for example, each person has a $50 deductible, capped at $150 for the family, and cleanings and exams are covered in-network without it.
Choosing a Family Dental Plan in Washington County
No website can reliably tell you which dentists in Washington County take a particular plan. Offices join and leave networks, so search the plan’s provider directory by the family’s dentists’ name and ZIP code, then call the office to confirm.
If braces are likely, read the orthodontia terms first: plenty of dental plans leave them out, and SecureDental PLUS limits them to the Premium tier, paying 70% after 12 months up to $500 a year and $1,500 over a lifetime.
Waiting periods are the catch. On SecureDental PLUS, cleanings are covered right away, fillings after 1 month, and crowns, bridges and orthodontia after 12 months, and HealthCare.gov warns that separate dental plans in general can have waiting periods for adults.
Serious dental emergencies, such as spreading infection or a broken jaw, are usually treated in a hospital and billed to health insurance rather than the dental plan. Medicare’s hospital directory lists no hospital with emergency services in Washington County itself, so the nearest emergency department may be in a neighboring county.
Call (713) 575-9904 to compare family dental plans for your address in Washington County, with the network checked before you apply.