An emergency visit at our Belmont Cragin office starts with a $99 exam, consultation and panoramic X-ray. That figure is fixed before you call. The cost of treatment isn't, because no one can price a tooth without seeing it. Call (773) 555-0199 and a same-day slot is yours, weekdays from 7:00 AM.
The $99 covers an emergency exam, consultation and panoramic X-ray. Fees may be adjusted due to complications or unforeseen circumstances. Treatment is priced separately and quoted to you in writing before any work starts.
Same-day appointments · $99 exam + X-ray · Phones answered 24/7 · Se habla español
What the $99 emergency exam covers
Three things. Our dentists examine the tooth or the area that hurts, you sit down with them to talk through what they found, and you get a panoramic X-ray. A panoramic image shows the whole mouth in one picture: every tooth, both jaws, the roots and the bone around them. For an emergency, that matters. A cracked molar and a wisdom tooth pushing sideways can feel the same at 6:00 AM. The X-ray tells them apart.
For a plan on our list, the exam and X-ray are billed to your plan. If you're paying on your own, the $99 is what you pay for the diagnosis. The "fees may be adjusted" sentence above is required by Illinois law for any advertised fee. It applies when complications change what the exam involves.
Why treatment is quoted in writing after the X-ray
You won't find treatment prices on this site, and we don't give them over the phone. We're not hiding them. We don't know them yet. Two patients can call the same morning with the same words, "my back tooth is killing me", and need completely different work. One tooth can be kept. The other has a root fractured below the gum and needs a surgical extraction. The X-ray and the exam are what separate those two cases.
So the order is always the same. Exam first. X-ray second. Then our dentists explain what the tooth needs, put the cost of that treatment on paper, and hand it to you. You read it. You ask questions. Nothing starts until you've said yes. If the tooth needs treatment we don't provide here, we explain what the tooth needs and the next step, and the written quote covers only what we do.
For more on how a visit runs, see the same-day dentist page.
Plans we work with
We work with most PPO plans, many Medicare dental plans and selected HMO plans. Plans we work with:
- Aetna PPO and HMO
- Aetna Medicare (non-Medicaid)
- Allied Benefit
- Ambetter
- Ameritas
- Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois PPO
- DNoA
- Careington PPO
- Careington 500
- Cigna PPO and HMO
- Delta Dental PPO
- DeltaCare USA HMO
- First Commonwealth HMO
- GEHA
- Guardian PPO
- Humana PPO
- Humana Medicare plans (non-Medicaid)
- Lincoln Financial
- MetLife
- Principal
- Elite Administration
- Mutual of Omaha
- Physicians Mutual
- Renaissance Dental
- Sun Life
- TeamCare
- United Concordia
- UnitedHealthcare PPO
- UnitedHealthcare Medicare
- Unum
- US Health Group
- Wellcare (some plans)
Coverage depends on your specific plan; call and we check it before you arrive. Have your member ID or the card in your hand when you call (773) 555-0199. The front desk looks up your plan while you're still on the line, so you know where you stand before you leave the house.
Medicaid is not accepted at our office.
Financing for your share
If the written quote is more than you can pay in one go, ask the front desk about financing before treatment begins. We work with CareCredit, Cherry, Sunbit, Eve Financial and Proceed. Each company sets its own terms and makes its own decisions, so questions about how a plan works go to that company directly. Patients paying on their own and insured patients with a balance left over can both ask.
Paying for an emergency on the Northwest Side
People around Belmont and Central want the number up front and no games after. That's the point of putting $99 on this page and nothing else. The exam cost is known. The treatment cost is on paper before a single instrument comes out. The service pages describe what each problem involves: emergency tooth extraction, toothache relief, dental abscess treatment, broken tooth repair and emergency denture repair. None of them list prices either, for the reason above.
We're at 5841 W Belmont Ave, Chicago, IL 60634, on W Belmont Ave between Central and Austin, with parking on site. The 77 Belmont bus stops along the avenue. Directions are on the contact page.
Frequently asked questions
Is the $99 the whole cost of my visit?
The $99 covers the emergency exam, the consultation and the panoramic X-ray. That's the diagnosis. If the tooth needs treatment, that treatment is a separate cost, and you get it in writing before anything starts. Some visits end at the diagnosis, with a plan and no work done that day. Others move straight into treatment once you've agreed to the written quote.
Can you tell me what an extraction costs before I come in?
No, and we'd be guessing if we tried. An extraction can be simple or surgical, and the X-ray decides which. On the phone, the two things we can tell you are the exam cost, $99, and whether we work with your plan. Once our dentists have seen the X-ray, the price of the extraction goes on paper and you decide.
What if I have insurance but you don't work with my plan?
Then you're a patient paying on your own: $99 for the exam, consultation and X-ray, then a written quote for any treatment. You can still send the paperwork to your insurer yourself and ask about reimbursement. Call (773) 555-0199 with your card handy and the front desk will check your plan before you make the trip.
Do I pay before or after the exam?
The exam fee is paid at the visit. Treatment costs are paid as agreed when you sign the written quote, and financing through CareCredit, Cherry, Sunbit, Eve Financial or Proceed can be set up at that point if you want it. Insured patients are told about any patient share at the same time.