Marina Dental Ctr

Wished I read the posted reviews before going into the office. I went to the office to get a basic dental cleaning done, they told me I need fillings, tried all the tricks in the book to get me to pay approx $1200 for my fillings (the dental was shocked as to why I didn't want to run the cost thru) and I opted to pay appro $400 in out of pocket cost which was way off from what I had paid in the past. I paid the costs cos I thot the procedures were required, now I have serious doubts about what they told. I have extreme pain in my mouth as a result of the work they did. Called the office to complain and spoke to a rude receptionist. PLEASE STAY AWAY FROM THIS DENTAL OFFICE

Posted 05/27/09 | Report Abuse

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Dr. Salo has been my dentist for years, when I went to MDC, I was told he is no longer part of the practice after a bit of a search I located him in his new Wilshire office. The office is super modern and professional. I ended up needing an implant, and the process was both affordable and smooth. They have Cat scan, cool surgical suite with movies and music and I was given some sedation so my chickenyyy self had a smooth sail.

Posted 03/27/09 | Report Abuse

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I took my kids there once. The dental hyg. said I have to wait outside. I said "no". My daughter was 6 at the time. He got argumentative with me and the office became quiet. I said I didn't want him to work on their teeth to clean them unless I was there. A woman who works there approached me and while I was speaking with her the dental hyg. came into the room yelling at my child "open your mouth" in a mean voice. I quickly got my kids out of there. They acted as if this was strange for me to like the way they were treating me. NO respect

Posted 03/09/09 | Report Abuse

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Please do not visit this dental office very corrupted and full of fraud.Amy "hoai" her real name is rude,unprofessional and sarcastic why do they even have her working. she gave a treatment plan with "my insurance fees" yeah right a crown"capteck"1400 when in my insurance is listed for 740 not only that they billed all the services i got done out -of network with Dr.hamayun which i never saw i saw Dr.K so for x-rays,exam and a prophy(basic cleaning) she billed $789 to insurance because they billed out-of network the insurance paid them $638 when according to Amy Dr. ginzburg is in network

Posted 02/27/09 | Report Abuse

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I picked this place without enough research. They were in my insurance network and close to where I worked. Made an appointment on my lunch break to discuss the cost of a procedure I wanted to have done. After waiting 30 minutes I was told it'd be another hour since the doctor had gone to lunch. Came back after work (wish I hadn't!) and the doctor still wasn't there so they took my x-rays (insisting there would be no cost to me). Never got to meet with a doctor, instead the women behind the front desk tell me the cost of the procedure will be $5000 and that insurance will cover only about $15, if anything. After talking to my insurance rep she insisted that they would cover $4000 and I would pay the difference. Marina Dental said she was only telling me this to keep me on their insurance policy. Several phone calls later, I decide to give up and go to a different dentist. Only then I found out that Marina Dental would not release my dental records without me paying an additional fee for each document (keep in mind my insurance was already billed for these exams)!! I had to wait until the next fiscal year when I could have the exams all done again by someone else. I have moved across the country a lot and never had a problem having my records transfered from one doctor to the next and certainly was never charged to have this done. DO NOT GO HERE! I recently found out a coworker went here and had a terrible experience as well. I wish I could have warned her. After reading all these reviews I can't believe this place hasn't been shut down.

Posted 12/05/08 | Report Abuse

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DO NOT GO HERE FOR BIG PROCEDURES: My husband went in for an emergency wisdom tooth extraction and knew he needed a new bridge.The extraction went fine, and we paid the correct co-pay. My 4 1/2 yr old son also went in for a cleaning and that went fine too. The problem was with the estimate for my husband's replacement bridge/crown: they gave him an esimate for approximately $4780, ONLY $40 OF WHICH WAS TO BE COVERED BY INSURANCE! I spoke with someone named Amy, who was very rude and said she explained this to my husband. I said I just wanted clarification as this was a lot of $, and she said "HE'S 40 YEARS OLD, HE SHOULD UNDERSTAND". OUR INSURANCE COMPANY SAID WITHOUT A DOUBT WE ARE ONLY RESPONSIBLE FOR APPROX. $845. DON'T GO HERE!

Posted 11/25/08 | Report Abuse

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I have to say, these reviews unfortunately sound too familiar. A friend has been going here for awhile and he really liked Dr. Ginzberg and says he's an amazing dentist so I decided to switch to their office. The wait was long (which I expected at any dentist office, to be honest) but it wasn't very clean in the treatment rooms and the rooms just didn't seem very modern. After they did a check up since I was a new patient, the dentist came in (not Dr. Ginzberg, Dr. K) and went over the findings very briefly. After he left, their treatment coordinator (don't know his title) came in and broke down the cost for me. There were charges for irrigation (never been charged for that before!) of $125 and other charges. Then he started cutting the costs down and crossing out prices on my treatment plan, which reminded me of being in a car sales office. Another person at the front desk was nice enough and explained a little bit more about the costs and treatments. Still, I had an uneasy feeling about everything and though I know I need work done, I felt like I was being "sold." What they should do is have their charges fixed- and give good prices. Don't tell someone that it's $300 and then cut it down to make them a "deal" for $185. When they started that, I began to wonder what the real price was and the last thing I wanted to do was haggle my bill at a dental office. I really wish I could write a good review because I wanted this to work out but I think it's best to try out a couple of other offices instead of going back there...

Posted 11/14/08 | Report Abuse

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If you value your dental health and pocket book avoid this place!!!! I was outrageously overcharged for an implant ($7,000). I paid in full while still bloody and sitting in the chair. They also put in some bone meal to try to save a tooth. Within a few weeks I knew it didn't work because my gum became swollen and ooze blood. I returned to MDC and they took an x-ray and said it was OK. I went to another dentist who took an x-ray which clearly revealed the tooth was abscessed and needed extraction. I had it extracted but not by MDC. Never again, avoid, avoid, avoid!

Posted 10/07/08 | Report Abuse

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Unfortunately my old dentist was not part of my new dental plan so I went here without doing enough research. I had requested a teeth cleaning and after my exam was told that I needed a deep teeth cleaning with an irrigation (what the hell is that anyways?) that the insurance didn't cover. This was supposed to cost me $125 extra out of pocket. When I started to ask why this was needed and why no other dentist had ever charged me for this, the person I was talking to (not the dentist, BTW) became defensive and after a while she said "fine, we'll give it to you for $75". Uh... okay... So we're haggling here about the care of my teeth? The last thing I want from the people who are supposed to provide my dental care is somebody who is going to try to upsell me on stuff and recommend a bunch of unnecessary stuff. So I switched dental provider and will never return here again.

Posted 09/05/08 | Report Abuse

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I went in with the coupon like many others and then they tried to talk me in to $5,600.00 worth of work. They had a sales guy actually come in and try to convience me to take out a loan and have the work done right a way. I send their dental plan for me to 3 other dentist and they were shocked at the prices. The 3 other west La dentist quoted me $2,000.00.

I tried to cancel and they put the sales guy on the phone and it was rediciouls, He even pulled the "let me talk to my manager to see what I can do for you line." and tried to present the same prices as some kind of special deal for me.

Posted 08/08/08 | Report Abuse

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PLEASE believe me and do not go to this place.everything is a SCAM there.I went there with one of those coupons to get exam and cleaning.they told me that I needed to get some work done for my teeth which was over $10.000 they chipped my tooth while cleaning it and they offered me to fix it for $2000.

Posted 04/09/08 | Report Abuse

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Marina Dental Ctr is a waste of time and money. I went in for a cleaning... and came out with three cavities. The third cavity was filled but did not get filled properly. I went in several times, they finally filled it for free. While I was there, the head DDS re-looked at my x-rays and said I needed a crown, and I waited for over 3 weeks for it to come in. While I was on the table with the temp crown pulled out, the real crown broke in half. I now have to go back in again. It's been two months now. If you had similar experience, please contact the california dental board....

Posted 01/07/08 | Report Abuse

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-long wait every single time-poor work quality-incompetent, rude, arogant office staff.high pricesRip off : they got extra money from me after my bill was payed 100% by the insurance company. Currently they owe me hundreds and they want me to go back and use the extra money I payed to have them do more crappy work. NO THANK YOU ! I'd rather miss hundreds than miss my teeth.

PROS: few
CONS: many

Posted 10/06/06 | Report Abuse

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You would be better off getting your dental work done in a back alley chop shop than at this office. I have had to have all my bondings removed and redone at UCLA. The enamel on my teeth was ruined here by a Dental assistant using the wrong product to polish them. I can't believe this guy is still in business after all the complaints brought against him before the Dental Board of California. However, there were enough to warrant the Board of Dental Examiners to pursue legal action, and take him before a court to answer to the charges filed by disgruntled patients. Unfortunatly he only had his license revoked for one month and got a slap on the wrist. STAY AWAY!

PROS: none
CONS: nothing but

Posted 04/04/06 | Report Abuse

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I went because of the 30.00 dental exam. I waited over an hour! The dentist insisted I have numerous x-rays. Then I was presented with a bill for almost 400.00 dollars!

Posted 05/01/05 | Report Abuse

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My dentist was Dean Salo. I overheard that he works at two offices, and the other one charges less for the same procedures. He explains everything thoroughly to his patients. The waiting room has a marble floor and is quite cozy. He even has one of those headsets that plays movies as you're getting your cavities filled. I didn't have dental insurance at the time, so it all seemed pricey.

Posted 12/28/04 | Report Abuse

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I went to Marina Dental Center because they offered a cleaning and exam for $30 to new patients and I am new to LA and thought this was a good deal. They couldn't get me in when I was scheduled so I had to come back at a later date. While a waited a heard the dentist get into a loud argument with a patient over his bill. They told me I needed two cavities filled. Not trusting the place after seeing their operation, I went home to my previous dentist and he couldn't find any cavities. Do not trust this place.

Posted 08/17/04 | Report Abuse

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