Edit: Thank you for the info about insurance everyone! If anyone happens to know a good English speaking dentist in Sapporo please let me know 🙂
Love and thanks from snowy Sapporo
Hi everyone, so I just arrived to Sapporo for a three month stay and last night I noticed a cavity. I was reading dental care is quite affordable but I don’t have dental coverage.
Does anyone have advice for not paying entirely out of pocket? Or recommendations for going to the dentist here? My Japanese is limited to introducing myself and making small talk about my hobbies.. Thank you for any help!
4 comments
What does your travel insurance coverage have? Though I doubt it would be covered as it’s not an emergency treatment.
Where are you in Sapporo? Lookup on Google map and Just go to a nearby dentist. The cavity treatment is pretty affordable in Japan even without dental coverage.
https://www.sapporolife.info/en/
https://www.sapporolife.info/en/article/?id=41
https://www.city.sapporo.jp/kokusai/tabunka/documents/hotline_en_20221019.pdf
You’re still probably looking at ~$200-300 out of pocket. Look for a English speaking dental office and call them for a quote. They’re not uncommon in Tokyo but might be more rare in Sapporo. Sapporo is still a large city though so you might be able to find one.
Travel insurance won’t pay for it, as it would be ‘pre-existing’ and not a travel-related injury/emergency. And if your regular insurance doesn’t cover dental, you have no other option but to pay entirely out of pocket.