Recently on Facebook, a circulating repost came from a San Francisco man desperate to find free dental care. One comment after another showed that many locals are unaware of the reduced cost or free ways to obtain services from a dentist in the Bay Area.
Currently, the Healthy San Francisco program gives free health care to the uninsured but no dental care. However, when it comes to getting your teeth cleaned or a molar fixed in the Bay Area, there is hope. Although it may not be common knowledge, there are several free and low-cost alternatives that work.
Why Craigslist dental care works
A November post at the SF Bay Craigslist website exemplifies the frustrations of many people. Unfortunately, being employed does not always mean that you have full health insurance that includes dental. Also, some workers simply make too much money to qualify for free programs, but also do not make enough to pay out of pocket for costly dental expenses like root canals. In a cry for help to the dentistry community, one local man on Craigslist asked dentists across the Bay Area for bartering options.
In another post, a dentist encourages Bay Area residents to call his office to negotiate trading crowns and implants for services the patient can offer. Fair trade for this dentist includes carpet cleaning and massage. According to some archived Craigslist ads, you can also offer this dentist your car, boat, or Rolex . To get started, you can place a short ad with your request by using the barter section of Craigslist.
Craigslist dental bartering warnings
Are there any drawbacks to using Craigslist to barter for dental care? As it appears, there are many for-profit organizations that look to enterprise on the bartering system. Obviously, bartering is a type of trade that does involve the exchange of cash.
For example, some Craigslist ads lead you to a website that suggests you pay a membership fee to their company in order to get in touch with dentists willing to give you care by bartering. Needless to say, your best bet is to contact dentists directly with an offer or post your own ad online. Other eyebrow raisers from places like the CaliforniaTradeBank.com include the suggestion that doctors and dentists also need to pay a monthly membership fee in order to use these services.
Depending on where you live, there are still a few stones that most locals leave un-turned. For example, FreeCycle.org is a free exchange alternative to Craigslist. At the website, a general list is provided in addition to several active Yahoo Groups accounts for the Bay Area.
When bartering dental fails
If you are in pain or running a fever, immediate dental care is necessary. When you run out of time waiting for bartering to work, there are a variety of well established low-cost and no-cost dental alternatives. Currently, the Berkeley Free Clinic offers care for teeth through their dental lottery. Another search alternative for the rest of the Bay Area comes from the CDA.org. By entering your zip code into the California Dental Association database, a long list clinics are revealed.
For immediate care in San Francisco, Healthy San Francisco suggests over ten clinics and private dental offices that offer a discount such as the University of the Pacific. Keep in mind, if it is an immediate dental emergency, patients can call SF General Hospital to find out when they have a dentist available.
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Maryam Louise is a former English instructor and materials developer for the Department of Defense Refugee Resettlement and Education Program in Louisville, Kentucky. Since 1997, she has contributed to academic works on the topic of gender. She has been living in the Bay Area since 2009, continuing her 15-year career in media.