MEDICAL : Fountain Valley-Based FHP to Sell Dental Coverage to Senior Citizens

FHP, the health maintenance organization based in Fountain Valley, recently began marketing dental coverage to its 99,000 Senior Plan members in Southern California, the company said.

“We piloted the program in our New Mexico region in our last fiscal year, and it was well received,” FHP spokeswoman Anna Marie Dunlap said. “So we decided to roll it out to Southern California.”

Senior citizens pay no premium for the basic FHP health care plan, the cost of which is paid by Medicare. However, Medicare will not pay for dental services, Dunlap said. So those seniors who choose to sign up for the dental service option, called the FHP Senior Dental Gold Plan, will pay a monthly $16.50 premium, she said.

For that premium, Dunlap said, FHP will provide all diagnostic services and preventive dental care, such as cleanings, exams and X-rays, and emergency treatment. She said the plan will also cover 80% of the cost of fillings and oral surgery and half the cost of periodontics, crowns, bridges and dentures.