Your First Visit

At your first visit to Stebbins Orthodontics, a panoramic digital scan and digital photos of your face and teeth are taken to determine the best course of treatment. This information is used to develop a custom treatment plan for your specific needs. These records are also helpful in tracking the progress of treatment as the teeth move under orthodontic care.

After the doctor has completed your examination, we discuss your treatment with you in detail, including the cost for your particular case.

Starting your treatment

The journey of getting started with your treatment usually consists of several appointments depending on the type of treatment you need. You will have records taken that include impressions to make digital models of your teeth and the necessary digital scans and photographs. This will be followed by appointments to get your appliances (braces, expanders, etc.). These appointments usually take from one to two hours and are scheduled during our mid-morning or early afternoon. In this way, before and after school appointments will accommodate as many families as possible for regular adjustments and shorter appointments.

Regular Appointments

You'll then see us at intervals 4 to 8 weeks apart for an "adjustment," which takes 15 to 30 minutes. Our regular patient hours are Tuesday through Friday from 7:30 AM to 4 PM, by appointment only. We make every effort to be on time for our patients, and ask that you extend the same courtesy to us.

If you should ever wish to come to our office during a quieter time, please ask to schedule an appointment during late morning hours.

If you cannot keep an appointment, please notify us. It is not always easy to rescedule immediately, since most appointments are made 4-8 weeks in advance. Our goal in rescheduling appointments is to keep your treatment progressing and on time.

Payment Information:

Cost

The cost of treatment depends on the type of treatment needed. You will be able to discuss fees and payment options before treatment begins. We have payment plans to suit different budgets, including a no-down-payment option. We also accept assignment from most insurance plans, and will file the necessary papers to the insurance company. We work hard to make orthodontics affordable.

Financial Guidelines

We offer a variety of payment plans for your convenience :

• Payment in full: If payment is made in full at the onset of treatment, we offer a bookkeeping courtesy. Advanced payment saves us time and expense in administrative costs and enables us to offer this valuable option.
  
• Flexible payment options: As a courtesy to our patients, we offer flexible payment arrangements that are tailored to meet your specific financial needs, based on an approved credit history.
  
• Automatic credit card payments: Since many patient prefer not to write monthly checks, we offer automatic credit card payments. We accept Visa, Mastercard, Discover, and American Express.
  
• No down payment option: We utiliize special companies who provide extended payment plans with many options. This gives patients additional payment options.
  

Insurance

If you have insurance, we will help you to determine the coverage you have available. We ask that you assign your insurance benefit to us. The balance will be arranged for you to pay (see above). Professional care is provided to you, our patient, and not to an insurance company. Thus, the insurance company is responsible to the patient and the patient is responsible to the doctor. We will help in every way we can in filing your claim and handling insurance questions from our office on your behalf.

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