Dental insurance claims and payments

Everything you need to know about submitting Delta Dental insurance claims.

  1. Dental insurance claims processing
  2. National Provider Identifier (NPI)
  3. Dual coverage
  4. Pre-treatment estimates
  5. Orthodontics claims
  6. X-rays and other documentation

Dental insurance claims processing

Everything you need to know about dental claims and payments.

Mailing addresses for dental claims processing

Delta Dental Premier ® and Delta Dental PPO™ Claims

Mailing addresses for your Delta Dental Premier and Delta Dental PPO claims.

Delta Dental of California
PO Box 997330
Sacramento, CA 95899-7330

Delta Dental Insurance Company
PO Box 1809
Alpharetta, GA 30023-1809

Mailing addresses for your DeltaCare USA claims.

Tips for faster dental insurance claims processing

Here are some suggestions to speed up claims payments.

Anticipate questions related to policy

Dental consultants look for reasons to approve your dental insurance claims. Anticipate what questions a dental consultant may have regarding a particular claim and prepare your dental narrative, providing clear explanations for the reasons your treatment should be paid.

Example: If you replace a crown that is less than five years old, anticipate the obvious question and explain what event or circumstance made the replacement necessary.

Dental consultants are licensed dentists, who share your depth of knowledge about dental services, treatments and diseases. Your knowledge and expertise about dentistry will likely come across clearly if you remember that your audience is a team of dental professionals just like you.

Include all patient information on every claim submission

Lack of sufficient information, especially the member’s ID number, is the most common reason for a delayed or denied claims adjudication. With electronic claim forms, your submissions are automatically edited for missing or invalid information before they are sent to carriers.

Help the dental consultant review your claim

For extensive or unusual dental procedures, what would you need to understand why a patient needs a particular treatment? Dental consultants cannot directly observe a patient’s condition, so let them know what cannot be seen on an x-ray and any special circumstances unique to your claim.

Example: If you submit a claim for a crown that was placed to restore a tooth with a fractured cusp, be sure the fractured cusp is visible in the x-ray copy. If it is not, include a written narrative so that the dental consultant will understand the purpose of the crown.

Understand the difference between what is covered and what is needed

Some procedures are not covered under your patient's plan or coverage limits, no matter what documentation is submitted. In such cases, it’s important to understand that a recommended treatment may be perfectly appropriate. It’s just not a payable claim under the terms of the dental benefit contract.

Example: If you provide treatment for erosion, there’s a good chance an insurance claim cannot be paid because erosion is a common exclusion under most dental plans. The same principle applies to treatments that address cosmetic needs rather than dental disease.