TEMPLE, Texas — Temple, Texas woman Monica Conway has allegedly been left with unfinished treatment and over $3,000 of debt after she says her treatment with Aspen Dental was terminated for an unknown reason.
It all began when Conway was diagnosed with osteoporosis. The bone disease caused her teeth to fall out. Because of this, she needed top and bottom dentures to be installed.
"I'm in my 40s so I wouldn't have thought I would need dentures so soon in my life," Conway explained.
Conway went on the hunt for affordable treatments in Central Texas and landed on Aspen Dental in Temple after seeing their advertisements for affordable care.
Conway's two insurance providers are Renaissance and MetLife.
"I wanted to be able to utilize my benefits to the fullest and Aspen was one of the ones that was accepted by both," Conway added.
After numerous consultations and ironing out price points, Renaissance and MetLife covered over 80% of Conway's final cost and she was left to pay about $3,200 out of pocket.
Treatment for dentures typically begins with receiving intermediate (temporary) dentures for at least six months before receiving the permanent pair. This is not something every patient has to do.
In December 2022, Conway got her top intermediate set of dentures done. The problem was, she says the set was far too big for her mouth.
"They were like horse teeth and just way too big for my mouth," Conway said. "I kept being told they were big because of swelling but I knew they were only going to get bigger."
After asking a plethora of times, Aspen Dental officials did eventually fix the top dentures, Conway said, and she says they now fit fine.
Conway then received her bottom set of dentures in February 2023. The problem is, those dentures did not fit properly in her mouth, she said, and she claims the set was a bit off-centered.
"I can barely even talk in them, let alone eat," Conway added. "So I tend to just leave them out. I'm young and I don't want to not have my bottom row of teeth in but I just have no choice now."
Conway had a family emergency out of state but said she reached out to the Aspen Dental Temple office as soon as she got back to Temple to discuss having her bottom dentures readjusted.
But after months of asking managers at the office to fulfill her request, Conway says she was told by the office that it was too late to get them fixed.
"They said 'Well it's too late'," said Conway. "I said 'How is it too late?' There was no answer to that. Nothing. Just that it's too late."
Conway wanted a refund at this point. She told 6 News she reached out to Aspen Dental's regional director Shannon Tomaskovic about her situation. Conway says Tomaskovic was very nice and helpful but nothing was actually fixed in the long run.
Conway said her insurance companies were also nice but didn't help as much as she needed.
Then, in September, Conway was sent a letter from Aspen Dental Temple's Doctor of Dental Surgery Karen Delaney stating that she was no longer able to receive care at their office.
A reason as to why was not stated in that letter. Conway said the letter also told her they would only be able to refund her half of what she paid them out of pocket, which is about $1,500.
Because her bottom dentures are extremely uncomfortable, Conway says she is now forced to leave them out of her mouth and be toothless on the bottom 95% of the time.
"I just want it taken care of," Conway pleaded. "I just want it done right and hopefully maybe warn people to stay away from them."
Conway is now part of a 17,500-member Facebook group where most members claim to have had bad experiences with the dental company.
6 News has reached out to Tomaskovic and the company's customer service several times over the past three weeks for comment on Conway's situation.
As of Wed. Feb 21, we have yet to receive a response but this is expected as the company is likely following HIPPA Laws.
Anyone experiencing something like this with their dentist's office is encouraged to submit their concern to the Texas State Board of Dental Examiners.
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