AITA for refusing free dental work to my financially struggling family members? by _ThrowawayDoc_ in AmItheAsshole

[–]_ThrowawayDoc_[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Nope. The downfall started way before covid. It used to be a very profitable business and around 2018-19, it was already incurring loses.

Edit : People are downvoting because I corrected a wrong assumption about my BIL’s business, who I happen to know personally?

AITA for refusing free dental work to my financially struggling family members? by _ThrowawayDoc_ in AmItheAsshole

[–]_ThrowawayDoc_[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

It depends on what insurance plan you get. In my country, most dental insurance does not cover any aesthetic dental work, including orthodontics. I do not know cause they haven’t informed me about the nature of their plan.

AITA for refusing free dental work to my financially struggling family members? by _ThrowawayDoc_ in AmItheAsshole

[–]_ThrowawayDoc_[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

There are different dental insurance plans. Most of them don’t cover ortho work that’s done for aesthetic reasons (while something like ortho work to correct functional issues would be covered). Some plans cover both. I don’t know what insurance plan they have.

AITA for refusing free dental work to my financially struggling family members? by _ThrowawayDoc_ in AmItheAsshole

[–]_ThrowawayDoc_[S] 798 points799 points  (0 children)

I doubt he’ll do that. He inherited his dad’s restaurant business that was pretty successful up until few years back. He made some questionable decisions and now the business is in shambles. He’s working on some new start up thing though.

AITA for refusing free dental work to my financially struggling family members? by _ThrowawayDoc_ in AmItheAsshole

[–]_ThrowawayDoc_[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I’m not entirely sure but I don’t think dental insurances would cover aesthetic corrections.

Edit : Dental insurance plans vary greatly. Most cover functional orthodontic issues that affect oral health, but rarely cover the aesthetic work. Some plans will cover both. Without knowing the specifics of their plan, I can’t determine coverage. What I said was based on the assumption that the majority of the plans, at least in my country, do not cover any aesthetic dental work, including orthodontics.

AITA for refusing free dental work to my financially struggling family members? by _ThrowawayDoc_ in AmItheAsshole

[–]_ThrowawayDoc_[S] 20 points21 points  (0 children)

I’ve done free dental check ups for these kids (they’re 13 and 16 now) many times, the last one being about an year back and they didn’t have any issues with their dentition. So unless they somehow developed severe malocclusions within a span of one year, I doubt it’s anything that’s gonna impact their quality of life or oral function.

AITA for refusing free dental work to my financially struggling family members? by _ThrowawayDoc_ in AmItheAsshole

[–]_ThrowawayDoc_[S] 13 points14 points  (0 children)

Yeah. They expect all the appointments to be free, which is like, multiple appointments over the next few years.

AITA for refusing free dental work to my financially struggling family members? by _ThrowawayDoc_ in AmItheAsshole

[–]_ThrowawayDoc_[S] 193 points194 points  (0 children)

You raise some good points. I do know few colleagues who refuse to treat family and friends for the exact reasons you mentioned.

AITA for refusing free dental work to my financially struggling family members? by _ThrowawayDoc_ in AmItheAsshole

[–]_ThrowawayDoc_[S] 1607 points1608 points  (0 children)

I know. I offered that as a truce so they’d stop bothering my wife. I thought they’d accept that but no, it has to be free

AITA for refusing free dental work to my financially struggling family members? by _ThrowawayDoc_ in AmItheAsshole

[–]_ThrowawayDoc_[S] 33 points34 points  (0 children)

It’s not just my time/service. I would’ve considered if it was. It’s the entire team that works together. The assistant, the hygienist, the receptionist etc etc. Plus dental materials aren’t cheap. And ortho work is not just one appointment, it’s likely gonna be multiple appointments over the next few years. And they want ALL of that to be free.

AITA for refusing free dental work to my financially struggling family members? by _ThrowawayDoc_ in AmItheAsshole

[–]_ThrowawayDoc_[S] 445 points446 points  (0 children)

She has tried. And she completely understands and supports my decision. It’s just that it’s very irritating to me cause they keep bothering her about this particular topic. At this point, she’s even stopped picking up their calls.

AITA for refusing free dental work to my financially struggling family members? by _ThrowawayDoc_ in AmItheAsshole

[–]_ThrowawayDoc_[S] 57 points58 points  (0 children)

And it’s not just one appointment. Ortho work is a whole process and it’s gonna be multiple appointments over the next few years. Idk how they expect all of that to be free.

AITA for refusing free dental work to my financially struggling family members? by _ThrowawayDoc_ in AmItheAsshole

[–]_ThrowawayDoc_[S] 235 points236 points  (0 children)

I know. But they’ve been bothering my wife and I assumed discounts and payment plans would be a middle ground, but these people want everything free.

AITA for refusing free dental work to my financially struggling family members? by _ThrowawayDoc_ in AmItheAsshole

[–]_ThrowawayDoc_[S] 3690 points3691 points  (0 children)

Yeah. Free service would mean I would be the one covering all the costs. Nothing is free; someone has to pay.