Diagnostic & preventive care
Examinations, x-rays, cleanings, scaling and other preventive services can be covered, usually subject to frequency limits and the applicable dental fee guide.
Group Dental Benefits
Dental benefits that are easy to understand — and designed to last.
Dental benefits are a highly visible part of an employee benefits program. Thoughtful plan design can provide valuable support for routine and more complex dental care while helping employers balance coverage with long-term cost.
Routine care · Major services
Common dental plan components
Build dental coverage around the needs of your workforce and organization.
Diagnostic & preventive
Basic restorative
Major restorative
Endodontics & periodontics
Orthodontics
Oral surgery
Independent market accessCompare dental options from leading Canadian insurers.
Plan-design flexibilitySet reimbursement, maximums and cost sharing to fit your objectives.
Renewal analysisReview utilization, pricing and plan performance.
Ongoing supportHelp with administration, claims and plan changes.
Why Dental Benefits Matter
A benefit employees understand and use
Dental care is a familiar, recurring expense for many employees and their families. Help with those costs can make a workplace benefits program feel relevant in everyday life.
What Dental Coverage Can Include
From everyday dental care to more extensive treatment.
Specific terms vary by insurer and plan. Employers should consider these provisions when designing or reviewing dental coverage.
Basic restorative services
Coverage for basic dental care may include fillings, extractions, oral surgery and other eligible services, subject to the plan’s reimbursement level.
Endodontics & periodontics
The plan may also include root-canal treatment and eligible periodontal services.
Major restorative services
Crowns, bridges and dentures may be covered under major services, typically with lower coinsurance and an annual maximum.
Orthodontics
Some plans include braces and other eligible orthodontic treatment, often subject to a separate reimbursement percentage and lifetime maximum.
Flexible dental plan design
A plan can provide preventive and basic care on their own or include major restorative and orthodontic benefits as additional layers of coverage.
Plan Design
Decide what the dental plan should do first.
Identify where the current plan falls short—or what a new plan should provide—before deciding which features to include.
Request a Plan Review01
Start with the services employees use most
Consider whether employees can obtain regular examinations and routine treatment without facing significant out-of-pocket expenses.
02
Review reimbursement and maximums together
Assess what an employee would receive for a typical claim and how much coverage would remain for further treatment that year.
03
Compare fee-guide and contract provisions
Use the same treatment example to show how fee-guide and contract rules can produce different payments under otherwise similar plans.
04
Build in sustainable cost sharing
Decide how costs will be divided between the employer and employees, considering both payroll deductions and amounts payable at the dentist.
Independent Advice
Understand what each proposal would mean in practice.
We identify material differences between insurer proposals and explain their implications for employees and the people administering the plan.
Compare Dental Benefit OptionsWhat we look at when comparing options
- Preventive, basic and major-service reimbursement levels
- Annual and lifetime maximums
- Fee-guide basis and coinsurance levels
- Recall frequency and service limitations
- Orthodontic provisions where included
- Administration, renewal approach and overall cost structure
Managing Cost
Assess what a saving would change.
Before recommending a cost reduction, we consider who would be affected, how their reimbursement could change and whether the saving justifies the impact.
Key plan design choices
Evaluate proposed adjustments separately to see how much each contributes to the overall saving.
CoinsuranceAnnual maximumsRecall frequencyFee-guide basisEmployer / employee sharing
Coverage structure
Check whether a proposed change would affect routine care broadly or concentrate its impact on employees needing more extensive treatment.
Preventive servicesBasic restorativeMajor restorativeOrthodonticsService-specific limits
Dental Benefits FAQs
Questions employers commonly ask.
Specific provisions differ by insurer and contract, so each plan should be reviewed on its own terms.
What is usually included in group dental benefits?
Common categories include diagnostic and preventive services, basic restorative care, endodontics and periodontics, major restorative services and, in some plans, orthodontics. The exact reimbursement levels and limits depend on the plan.
What does 80% or 100% dental coinsurance mean?
It refers to the percentage of an eligible dental expense the plan reimburses, subject to the contract, applicable dental fee guide, annual maximums and other plan provisions.
Why does the dental fee guide matter?
Insurers reimburse eligible expenses using a specified provincial dental fee guide. The guide year and reimbursement rules affect how much an employee receives back.
Can we improve dental coverage without significantly increasing cost?
Often, yes. Employers can make targeted adjustments to selected plan features instead of increasing benefits across the board.
Should orthodontics be included in every dental plan?
Not necessarily. Orthodontics can be valuable for some workforces, but it adds cost and is usually subject to separate coinsurance, lifetime maximums and eligibility provisions. The decision should reflect workforce needs and budget.
Get Started
Want to know whether your dental benefits could work better?
We can review your current dental coverage, pricing and plan design—or help you build a new plan from the ground up.