Turns out my company insurance doesn't cover dental as well as I had initially thought. I had cancelled my personal dental insurance a couple of months ago thinking I was covered under my new job. That is completely on me, lesson learned.

Last week I had to payout ~$2k for some emergency work and will need additional work in the near future. I will be picking up my personal dental again before moving forward with the oral surgeon. I have 3-4 months for the graft to heal so I'll be ok there. In reading a bit, it appears one can have dual coverage. Essentially a second plan can be used to help offset my out of pocket expense. It looks as if I just need to make sure that neither policy carries a non-duplication clause. My previous dental insurance was with Delta Dental if that matters.

So after all that, does anybody here carry dual coverage? And if yes, who ar your providers? My wife's current job doesn't offer benefits so I can't jump on hers.

My wife and I both have Delta dental through our respective employment. It covers more than just a single plan would even though it's through the same company. Two employers paying into it.

It sounds like that's not your situation though. Are you saying you can get coverage through your work and then buy another plan out of pocket? I don't know if that would save you money or not. No experience there.

Keep in mind you won't have immediate coverage for a new plan unless possibility it is a replacement for another plan that was still in effect. Also check out the limits on what a plan will pay for a procedure, copay percentage (often 50 percent for major stuff), and maximum yearly benefit which is typically $1500 I believe.

So read the fine print on any plan you are looking to purchase including waiting period for benefits for specific procedures and the more expensive the longer the wait period usually. It is a good idea to find what local dentists will accept any dental insurance you are considering too.

Waiting periods vary by state. This is an example from Delta Illinois:

"After enrolling in a new dental plan, coverage for some services could be subject to a benefit waiting period. A benefit waiting period is the amount of time before you are eligible to receive benefits for all or certain dental treatments.

Every dental plan is different, but typically, there are no waiting periods for diagnostic and preventive services such as cleanings and exams. So after your plan’s effective date, your benefits will normally cover preventive dental care.

On the other hand, your dental plan may have a 6- or 12-month waiting period for certain services. For example, some plans may require a 6-month waiting period for basic restorative services, such as fillings and non-surgical extractions; or a 12-month waiting period for major services, such as crowns or dentures. Most individual and family dental benefit plans (purchased independently not through an employer) have waiting periods.

Say for instance your new dental plan has a 12-month waiting period for major services and your dentist informs you that you need a crown. If your coverage is effective on July 1, your plan will not cover a portion of the cost for a major service, such as a crown, until July 1 of the following year.

Depending on your dental plan, benefit waiting periods may be waived if you or your dependents were covered for 12 continuous months under another dental benefits plan. However, most dental plans will require that your previous coverage ended recently (usually within the past 30 to 60 days) to qualify for waiting periods to be waived. You may need to provide proof of prior coverage to your dental benefits carrier.

Generally, waiting periods must be satisfied if there has been a lapse in coverage or for new members added to a policy."

We had two health insurance plans when our son was born as my wife liked her plan, and I liked mine.

One thing I didn't even think about at the time is that neither of them wanted to pay hoping the other would. They would both deny it saying there was other insurance that should be used. Then the hospital would send us a bill for the full amount and then it was left on me to get one of them to pay. It also didn't work where one picked up some and one picked up the rest. It was one policy per claim only.

I'd make sure it's going to work the way you want it to before paying the extra premiums.