Do yourself a favor and heed the warnings of all of these negative reviews. I recently got on HMO dental insurance. I was told that such insurances don't attract good, reputable dentists because they compensate so low, and my experience with this practice confirms it.
I have seen the same wonderful dentist in Vista for some 15 years, have had routine prophies every three months and have routinely monitored the depths of my pockets. When he retired last year, his replacement dentist wanted to crown a cracked tooth and identified a small cavity. Because their prices were high, and I did not believe that I suddenly needed a new crown, I went to a different dentist, who filled the small cavity, but said although I had a cracked tooth, it did not need crowning at that time.
When I got on the new HMO dental insurance, I searched for a new dentist that would accept my insurance and that I thought I might be happy with, but they were few and far between. Most had poor reviews.
Even though many of the reviews reported that Vista Modern Dentistry (VMD) is a bait and switch practice (get you in for $59 and free X-rays then insist you have unnecessary services at a high price) and especially that they often recommend deep cleanings when it seemed unnecessary, I decided I would try them because they were convenient and accepted my insurance.
Before Dr. Renato Bravo even looked in my mouth, he started talking to me about having a "deep cleaning." Then when he examined my teeth, he said I had pockets in the 5 and 6 mm depths. None of the three offices I went to in the past year identified pockets that were 6 mm deep. As we know, the depth of gum pockets can be subjective, and a dental professional can say whatever he wants since we have no way of verifying without getting a second opinion.
The quote for "deep cleaning" and root planning was about $275 per quadrant of my mouth, which insurance covered, and then Bravo wanted me to pay for some other associated service at $75 per quadrant, which insurance would not cover.
I declined the additional service, and sincerely doubted I needed the deep cleaning/root planing service, but since I wasn't paying for it, I thought, what could it hurt, and it would probably be good for my gums, so I agreed. In addition, I couldn't then go to another dentist without paying full price out of pocket for another round of X-rays, exam, and prophy, so I was pretty much stuck with VMD for a while.
Stephanie, the hygienist, numbed my mouth with topical anesthetic then proceeded with the "deep cleaning." She was nice, and I felt no pain. In fact, VMD's idea of a deep cleaning was actually less thorough and less deep than the routine cleanings I'd been getting quarterly with no anesthetic necessary, but by coding it as a "deep cleaning" VMD could charge the insurance company much more than a routine cleaning.
Before leaving I tried to schedule my next routine prophy (which my insurance covers twice a year and would cost me $20 for each additional routine prophy), but I was informed that I must have a more extensive prophy than routine going forward, which my insurance would not cover. When I said I only wanted a routine prophy, Renato Bravo told me that he would not see me if I did not get the more extensive prophy. (Undoubtedly, because he could not charge max fees for a routine prophy.)
I have NEVER had a dentist tell me that he would not keep me as a patient if I did not get the services recommended. In fact, I often delayed X-rays at my long-time dental office, and they simply asked me to sign something confirming that I had declined the X-rays even though they had recommended them just to cover their azz.
Finally, when I questioned Renato Bravo's recommendations, he kept telling me that their recommendations and practices are not dictated by insurance companies. However, the recommendations and practices of Bravo and VMD are exactly predicated on manipulating insurance payments and patient out of pocket payments to maximize compensation.
Again, do yourself a favor and avoid this money-grubbing strip mall dental office. read more