Can you afford to go to the dentist and receive costly treatments on your teeth when you are busy fretting over what bills you can actually afford to pay on time this month? If you can’t, then you are like millions of other Americans out there who just cannot afford the rising costs of dental care. Sure there are insurance discounts, discount cards and so on, but that still does not take away from the high costs of taking care of your teeth in a society where most people are feeling the money pinch right now. Why Dental Care Costs So Much There are good reasons as to why dental care costs so much today. One contributing factor is inflation and a declining economy. Another is overhead costs of the individual dentist – continuing education, equipment costs and so on. And yet another is the lack of much needed dental insurance reform to help offset the out of pocket costs on dental care to the financially strapped consumer. Combine all of these and you have the makings for expensive dental treatments that most people cannot afford. Possible Solutions The government should step in and reform the dental insurance industry to cover more costs of treatments and cost less, and to be more accessible for the millions of people who need such coverage. Another step in the right direction would be to offer tax deductions to all citizens for costly dental care. Finally, the government should offer financial assistance to lower income families for their dental costs.