Always go to a private clinic. They're less likely to almost kill you.
Since I was a boy, I'd gone to the dentist at the local mall. The usual tortuous process and ridiculous fees, but hell, I was on my mum's health plan from work, so the money was nothing to me.

Until the coverage ran out one year, and I needed my wisdom teeth out. I went to the doctor and told him plainly that I had a thousand dollars left on the health coverage and then I was cut off. 'Fine' he says, and then charged me a quarter of that for just the x-rays. Made an appointment to get them out a month from then, and sent me on my way. It was the receptionist who told me that the appointment I'd just scheduled would cost two grand.

Forget that noise, thought I, i'm certainly not giving that kind of money to a two-faced liar who doesn't give a shit about my financial situation. I found another clinic, this time run by a single doctor, and not a comglomerate. Went in for my introductory appointment, and it was like night and day. First thing he told me was that if I was paying for this out of my pocket, I really didn't need to come in every six months. My teeth were in wonderful condition anyway. Then he waives the x-ray fee because he knew I needed to save the money for the operation, and then the kicker came.

"You have asthma, don't you?"
"Yes.," I reply, "Is that a problem?"
"Well, we can't do the operation here, the anesthetic would kill you."

Those fuckers at the mall use the exact same stuff. If I'd gotten my wisdom teeth out there, I would have died in the chair. THEN he says that they'll do the operation at the local hospital, and the government will cover it. Saved my life and my wallet, awful nice of him.

Ask yourself if your dentist would do something like that for you. Maybe it's time you sought another clinic.
(Random Ferret, Thu 2 Nov 2006, 17:26, Reply)