NCD, underwritten by Metropolitan Life Insurance Company
MetLife Essentials DPOEvery benefit below is transcribed from the NCD dental plan summary NCD-MLEssentials-DPO (MetLife L1224045514, last updated 8 May 2026). Benefits, amounts and riders vary by state; the policy issued to you governs.
Nothing waits. Benefits start the day the cover does Included
Preventive, basic and major work are all payable immediately from the start date of an individual’s benefits, with no waiting period printed against any of the three.
What the plan pays, by type of work Included
Preventive work (Type A) is paid at 100%. Basic work (Type B) is paid at 65% in year one, 80% in year two and 90% from year three. Major work (Type C) is paid at 10% in year one, 50% in year two and 60% from year three. The percentages are the same in network and out.
That is the same share schedule as the Complete plan, for a smaller annual maximum and an ordinary yearly deductible.
The calendar year maximum Included
$2,000 per person, per calendar year.
The deductible Included
$50 per calendar year, applying to an individual, on basic (Type B) and major (Type C) work. Preventive work is not subject to it.
Three cleanings and three examinations a year, not two Included
Examinations 3 times in 1 calendar year and cleanings 3 times in 1 calendar year, with problem-focused examinations combined with the examinations limit. Periodontal maintenance is 3 treatments in 1 calendar year, includes 3 cleanings (total comb: 3).
Worth real money to somebody under periodontal care, who is usually told to come in more often than twice a year.
Type A and Type B — what else is in them, and how often Included
Preventive (Type A) also covers fluoride 1 time in 12 months for a dependent child under age 14 and bitewing X-rays 1 time in 12 months. Basic (Type B) covers sealants 1 per molar in 60 months for a child under age 14, space maintainers 1 per lifetime for a child under age 14, full mouth X-rays once in 60 months, and amalgam fillings, 1 replacement per surface in 24 months.
Labs and other tests, emergency palliative treatment, periapical and other X-rays, simple extractions, pulp capping, pulp therapy and resin composite fillings — which here include coverage for composite fillings on molars — carry no specific frequency or age limitation, and all of them sit in basic work rather than major.
Type C, major — and how often Included
Consultations 1 in 12 months. Root canal 1 per tooth per lifetime. Periodontal surgery 1 per quadrant in any 36 month period. Scaling and root planing 1 per quadrant in any 24 month period. Prefabricated crowns, crown buildups and post cores, dentures, fixed bridges, and inlays, onlays and crowns are each 1 per tooth or 1 in 10 calendar years. Denture rebases and relines 1 in 36 months, denture adjustments 1 in 12 months, repairs and recementations 1 in 12 months, tissue conditioning 1 in 36 months, occlusal adjustments 1 in 12 months.
General anesthesia, pulpotomy, apexification and recalcification, soft and connective tissue grafts, non-surgical periodontics, surgical extractions and other oral surgery carry no specific frequency or age limitation.
A tooth you had already lost before you were covered Not covered
The first denture fitted to replace one or more teeth that were missing before the insurance started is excluded, as is an implant-supported prosthetic for the same teeth. Congenitally missing natural teeth are the exception.
This is the clause that most often surprises somebody buying dental cover with a gap they already have. Read it before you assume the gap is covered.
No orthodontia, at any age Not covered
Orthodontia services or appliances are excluded, and so is the repair or replacement of an orthodontic appliance. If braces or aligners are what you are looking for, none of these plans pay toward them.
Use a dentist in the network, or any dentist you like Included
In network the plan pays its share of the MetLife PDP Plus PPO Network fee the dentist has agreed to accept. Out of network it pays the same share of the Maximum Allowable Charge, which is a schedule MetLife sets — so an out-of-network dentist may charge more than the plan measures its share against, and the difference is yours.
The plan pays the same percentage either way. What changes is the figure the percentage is taken of.
MetLife Essentials DPO on its own page, with its own enrollment link.
Does this apply in your state?
This company's documents name no states at all. They say the products are not available in all states and leave it there, so we publish no availability claim for them in either direction — we are not going to guess, and a guess is what gets an application declined after you have filled it in.
Tell us your state and we will check it and send you the documents that apply to you. Call (424) 295-0627, or use the form at the bottom of this page. You can also check availability yourself on this company's own enrollment page — the links are at the top of this page and again in the costs section below.
Confirm these two before you sign
None of these appear in the sales brochure, and each changes what the policy is worth to you. Ask for them in writing, in the policy and the outline of coverage for your state, and do not take our word or anyone else's for it.
- Who can buy it, and how long it lasts The eight plan summaries we hold set out what each plan pays and how often. They do not state an issue age, an underwriting question or a renewal term, so nothing about any of those is published here. Ask for the certificate of coverage for your own state before you sign. Where the plans are written is a separate question and it is answered above.
- Whether implants are covered at all This summary lists no implant benefit in its schedule, and — unlike the Bright plans — its exclusion list does not exclude implantology either. The document does not answer the question. The agency's own answer, from Darin Weidauer on 24 September 2026, is that only the Complete plan and the Elite plans in this family schedule an implant benefit, and this one does not cover implants. That is our answer and not a line in your summary, so if implants are the work you are planning, get it out of the certificate of coverage in writing before you buy — or look at the NCD plans that schedule them explicitly.
Required disclosures from NCD, underwritten by Metropolitan Life Insurance Company
Dental insurance policies featuring the Preferred Dentist Program are underwritten by Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, New York, NY 10166. Like most insurance policies, insurance policies offered by MetLife and its affiliates contain certain exclusions, exceptions, reductions, limitations, waiting periods and terms for keeping them in force. Please contact (800) 485-3855 for costs and complete details. Coverage may not be available in all states.
Negotiated fees refer to the fees that in-network dentists have agreed to accept as payment in full for covered services, subject to any co-payments, deductibles, cost sharing and benefits maximums. Negotiated fees are subject to change.
Payment for out-of-network services is based on the lesser of the dentist’s actual fee or the Maximum Allowable Charge (MAC). The out-of-network Maximum Allowable Charge is a scheduled amount determined by MetLife.
This brochure provides a brief summary of benefits. For a complete listing of benefits, exclusions, and limitations, please refer to the certificate of coverage. In the event of discrepancies contained in this brochure, the benefits, terms, and conditions contained in the certificate documents shall govern.
Products are not available in all states. Please call (800) 485-3855 to verify current state availability.
Services which are not dentally necessary, those which do not meet generally accepted standards of care for treating the particular dental condition, or which we deem experimental in nature. Services for which a covered person would not be required to pay in the absence of dental insurance. Services or supplies received by a covered person before the insurance starts for that person. Services which are neither performed nor prescribed by a dentist except for those services of a licensed dental hygienist which are supervised and billed by a dentist and which are for scaling or polishing of teeth or fluoride treatment. Services which are primarily cosmetic. (For residents of Texas: Services which are primarily cosmetic unless required for the treatment or correction of a congenital defect of a newborn child).
Services or appliances which restore or alter occlusion or vertical dimension. Restoration of tooth structure damaged by attrition, abrasion or erosion unless caused by disease. Restorations or appliances used for the purpose of periodontal splinting. Counseling or instruction about oral hygiene, plaque control, nutrition and tobacco. Personal supplies or devices including, but not limited to: water piks, toothbrushes, or dental floss. Initial installation of a Denture to replace one or more teeth which were missing before such person was insured for Dental Insurance, except for congenitally missing natural teeth. Decoration or inscription of any tooth, device, appliance, crown or other dental work. Missed appointments.
Services covered under any workers’ compensation or occupational disease law. Services covered under any employer liability law. Services for which the association of the person receiving such services is not required to pay. Services received at a facility maintained by the Policyholder, labor union, mutual benefit association, or VA hospital. Services covered under other coverage provided by the Policyholder. Services, to the extent such services, or benefits for such services, are available under a government plan. This exclusion will apply whether or not the person receiving the services is enrolled for the government plan. We will not exclude payment of benefits for such services if the government plan requires that Dental Insurance under the group policy be paid first.
Temporary or provisional restorations. Temporary or provisional appliances. Prescription drugs. Services for which the submitted documentation indicates a poor prognosis. The following when charged by the dentist on a separate basis - Claim form completion; infection control such as gloves, masks, and sterilization of supplies; or local anesthesia, nonintravenous conscious sedation or analgesia such as nitrous oxide. Dental services arising out of accidental injury to the teeth and supporting structures, except for injuries to the teeth due to chewing and biting of food. Caries susceptibility tests. Precision attachments associated with fixed and removable prostheses. Adjustment of a denture made within 6 months after installation by the same dentist who installed it. Duplicate prosthetic devices or appliances. Replacement of a lost or stolen appliance, cast restoration or denture. Intra and extraoral photographic images. Fixed and removable appliances for correction of harmful habits.
Appliances or treatment for bruxism (grinding teeth), including but not limited to occlusal guards and night guards. Treatment of temporomandibular joint disorder. This exclusion does not apply to residents of Minnesota. Orthodontia services or appliances. Repair or a replacement of an orthodontic appliance. Implant Supported Prosthetics to replace one or more teeth which were missing before such person was insured for Dental Insurance, except for congenitally missing natural teeth.