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As the only practice in Minnesota with extensive experience in using ten different oral appliances to treat patients, we can develop a treatment program that is customized for your needs. We work closely with the area’s sleep medicine physicians to provide the best care for our patients and we would like to help you.
We have built one of the few practices in the United States to focus on dental sleep medicine and in doing so, have also become one of only a number of clinics in the country that has been accredited by the American Academy of Dental Sleep Medicine.
Since its founding in 1992, the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Dental Treatment Center has grown through referrals and close working relationships with sleep disorder centers, physicians and other dentists throughout Minnesota.
Drs. Parker, Forslund and Nicholson are also grateful for the many referrals from both current and former patients.
Your visit to our office will include a thorough history and head, neck and throat evaluation to assess your situation. This information is combined with sleep test results to confirm your diagnosis and determine the appropriate treatment options. We will coordinate your care with your physicians and dentist to help determine the most comfortable and effective way to resolve your snoring or apnea condition.
The treatment option we offer is oral appliance therapy. Based on your specific circumstances, oral appliance therapy can be a very effective solution for treating snoring and sleep apnea. We have been treating patients with snoring and sleep apnea problems successfully using oral appliance therapy for more than 30 years.
Read what some of our patients have to say
More information on oral appliance therapy
We believe our first responsibility is to inform and educate our patients.
We review the evaluation findings and explain the risks, benefits and reasonable expectations of the different treatment options with you. We will discuss whether or not an oral appliance is appropriate for your situation. If so, we will guide you in deciding which oral appliance will be most effective and comfortable for you. Then we will work closely with you for a 3-6 month period to ensure the comfort and effectiveness of your treatment.
Thereafter, you will be seen at least once a year to assess your progress. This comprehensive approach is important to achieving a successful treatment outcome.
additional resources
If you are unsure that you have sleep apnea or snoring problems but are experiencing difficulties with daytime sleepiness or waking during the night, the following information may help:
Frequently Asked Questions
Four Strategies to Minimize Snoring
Types of Oral Appliances
How Important is Sleep?
"Is it just snoring or something more?" by Dr. Forslund
New York Times Article “The Pandemic Messed with your Sleep. Here’s How to Feel Rested Again”
New York Times Article: For Sleep Apnea, a Mouth Guard May be a Good Alternative to CPAP
New York Times Article: How to Get a Better Night’s Sleep
American Academy of Dental Sleep Medicine - A newly updated national resource site.
Medical insurance can be confusing. Many medical insurance companies provide coverage for oral appliance therapy for obstructive sleep apnea, but your policy will specify your level of coverage. We have been effectively advocating on our patients’ behalf with insurance companies for over 30 years. We look at each patient’s individual needs and help you to obtain the maximum insurance benefits possible.
In our practice, we will always make treatment recommendations based on what we believe is in your best interest to improve your sleep and your health. We will help you understand the cost of your treatment so you can make an informed decision about oral appliance therapy. We will also explain how your insurance benefits can help you with the cost of treatment. To that end, we can send a pre-treatment determination of benefits to your insurance company so you will have an estimate of your out-of-pocket costs prior to pursuing treatment.
Medicare patients - We’re happy to help with information about qualifying for reimbursement from Medicare for an oral appliance.
We hope you will see us as a resource in helping you make healthy choices. We intend to be in a relationship with you for a long time so your long-term health is important to us.
Do insurance companies cover oral appliance therapy?
Yes, most medical insurance companies cover oral appliance therapy for treatment of obstructive sleep apnea. It is our experience that over 90% of patients have plans that cover a portion of this treatment.
Can I still come to Snoring and Sleep Apnea Dental Treatment Center and get coverage for my treatment even if the clinic is not a provider in my insurance network?
There are specific provisions within most insurance plans to cover a portion of services from out-of-network providers. Check with your insurance company to confirm that you have out-of-network benefits.
Is the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Dental Treatment Center an in-network provider for any insurance companies?
Yes, we are a provider for most of the plans for each of the payers below: BCBS of MN, Medica and Medica IFB, United Health Care (UHC), Preferred One, Aetna, Tricare West and HealthEZ/America’s PPO Insurance plans.
Do I need to pay for care at the time of the visit?
If we are in-network providers for your medical insurance then you will only need to pay your policy’s co-insurance at each visit to our office.If we are out-of-network providers for your medical insurance carrier,it is our practice to require payment at the time of service and to help you get reimbursed by your insurance company according to your policy. If our office is not a provider in your insurance network, we do not have access to information about your insurance coverage rates, co-payments and deductibles. However, we will submit the insurance claim for you and provide the necessary documentation to help you receive your maximum insurance benefits. We find that over 90% of our patients have coverage for their treatment.
** It is important to note that each insurance company’s coverage/reimbursement is dependent on the plan you or your employer has chosen. At our clinic, we are in network with most plans for the following insurances:
BCBS
United Healthcare
UMR
Medica
Aetna
If your insurance company is not listed here, please check with our office for your specific plan.
