Publication:Sea Talk Spring 2007/Fang farriers count for claims

How many teeth do you have in your mouth?

By Graham Davis

Dental assistant LS Scott Norbury looks down in the mouth. Pic by ABPH Nadia Monteith.

Defence Health is keen to know how many teeth you have in your mouth. By having the details they can stamp out errors or fraud when it comes to payments for dental treatment.

In its Winter edition of its Defence Health News, the medical insurer announces that it has introduced a new security measure to identify potential errors and fraudulent dental claims.

"For instance, we will be able to recognise whether a filling is being claimed in error on a tooth that has previously been extracted," Defence Health says. "We have written to dental practices advising that where dental treatment has taken place on individual teeth, tooth numbers are required on all dental accounts. This practice is being used by many other health funds. Identifying errors and fraudulent claims helps us to offer affordable premiums and meaningful benefits."

The newsletter adds: "So next time you see your dentist, please ensure your tooth numbers, if relevant, have been included on the invoice/receipt. If you choose to claim on-the-spot using your membership card, the provider will need to enter the tooth numbers for the electronic claim to be processed."