nenni68,i work in a store,an i know wat you mean,its unbelievable,the people that come in there with badger cards an ebt cards,that shouldnt have them,an im not being mean or judgemental,im lucky i have dental insurance thru my job,an i pay a premium each month for the badger card,but i too,just cringe when i see some of the stuff people have,an just abuse the system,when there are others out there who cant get anything,because of one loop hole or another,drs.agard&lipker are fine people an what they did was very nice,no complaints here because they dont take badgercare,the state should even out the money for health an dental,because its just as important to go the dentist as it is the doctor.

Drs. Douglas Agard and Scott Lipker, thank you for paying it forward. I know you are not out to be publicly recognized for the good that you have done, but I want to recognize you for showing others that good things can be done. Not only did you manage to warm the hearts of people you will never meet, but you warmed the hearts of your employees. It is acts of kindness like this that should be contagious, imagine the outcome. May you and all your employees have a safe and Happy New Years!

nenni-I agree with you. I work in a dental office also and have seen it time and time again of those who abuse the system. We stopped taking badgercare due to the little that was covered/paid. So our office helps in other ways- like discounting/writing offs. We also do drives for echo and other charities as well. It's amazing how much free dental we do.

whybesad, you're missing the point. I don't fault the dental offices for not accepting BadgerCare and receiving a mere pittance for their work. I do fault the powers that be in Madison who consistently shoot down pay increases for dental work done under state insurance.

Okay so most dental offices don't accept badgercare. With this big push to expand badgercare and the push by the incoming President to socialize medicine. I'm just wondering if they only pay pennies on the dollar to the practice how is that doctor going to be able to stay in business?

This is a truely inspiring story. I think it is wonderful that these dentists are motivating not only their staff, but the entire community, to "pay it forward" without expecting any sort of acknowledgement. I'm sure that in the current state of the economy, the $50 gift cards helped to brighten up many families holidays. Thank you for posting this superb story!

Momof5, I was referring to those who abuse the system. There are more of them out there than many people realize. I work for a pediatric dental office, and we do accept Badgercare. We see all kinds of folks. I do not need you to explain psych or sociology to me. In our office we see those who have lost their jobs and are down on their luck. We see those who are self employed. We see those whose employers do not offer dental insurance. We see those who have health insurance. We also see those of whom I spoke and thus, give state aid a bad rap, as I said.
We (administrative, hygenists, assistants, and the doctors) provide EVERYONE equal care and treat every single person who walks through our doors with respect and dignity. It's just a little harder to stomach those who brag about their recent tummy tuck ("had to pay cash for it because the state wouldn't cover it")while we are performing thousands of dollars of restorations on their child courtesy of the state. Sound extreme? Sadly, it's just one of many examples of those who feel "entitled."
The bottom line is that there are all kinds of people in this world--good and bad-- and in my profession, we see both. I only wish those who abuse the system would realize how much damage they are doing to themselves, their children, and those who are truly in need of help and are grateful for the help they receive.

nenni: My point was that to imply that patients who have their nails manicured, a bluetooth headset, or a new cellphone are less deserving of BadgerCare than those who do not have those things is equally unfounded. Of course there are abusers of the system. But, having your nails freshly painted or texting on your touch screen cell phone or driving a "nice" vehicle does not immediately imply you are not in need of help or assume you are entitled to it. MAYBE some who are coming in and acting as if they are entitled to care are doing so because their pride is deeply bruised. It's not easy, for a hardworking person who is not playing the system, to flash "that" Forward card.
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JimPl: Contact the dental clinic offices at UW Hospital, Meriter Hospital or Madison Pediatric Dental. Granted, none of them are in Walworth. But, they are worth the drive and they do take BadgerCare. Madison Pediatric Dental is an mazing place with awesome doctors and hygienists! Makes me want to be a kid so I can be a patient there. LOL Also, the work that Marquette Univeristy Dental School students do is equally sound as a private practice dentist.....And YES it is VERY true that if you let your abscess go it can lead to either a fatal brain or heart infection. While still rare, it is more common to die from the abscess spreading to the brain.

Momof5, please go back and re-read the first sentence of my first post. Your comment, "It's not just for self-entitled slobs who have a lot of bling." Is completely unfounded.

A little over a year ago, my wife spent several hours calling every single dentist in Walworth County. She asked two questions:
1) Do you have openings for new patients with BadgerCare?
If that answer was yes, then:
2) Do you have openings for child patients?
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She was unable to find even ONE dentist in ALL of Walworth County that would take our family. NOT ONE! The closest we can find is a drive of about 45 minutes. And that one takes about six weeks to get in to see.
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I had to have a tooth extracted earlier this year. The tooth could have been saved with a root canal but state insurance doesn't cover root canals. I certainly didn't have the $1200 to pay for it out of pocket. State insurance does cover tooth extractions so that's what I had to do.
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I currently have an abscessed tooth that needs a root canal. My options at this point are either having it extracted or paying $300 under the table to a dental intern who will do it under the "supervision" of a dentist. Doesn't that sound appealing? I've been told that if an abscessed tooth is left untreated, it COULD lead to death. Don't know how true that is or not at this point.
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Neither my employer nor my wife's offers dental insurance. Private dental insurance is way out of our price range. So, here we sit.
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I did contact various members of my state and local government. Kedzie basically told me to suck it up as it just isn't going to change. Lothian's office at least went so far as to contact some people in Madison but nothing much came of it. The essential problem is Wisconsin pays next to nothing to the dentists who accept state insurance. They'll pay a ton of money for medical coverage but apparently they don't feel dental services are all that necessary for their voters.

The problem with Badgercare is the paybacks. We get anywhere from 3 to 7 calls a day asking if we take Badgercare. When I tell them no, I am then asked if I know who does. Sadly I do not know any! I do know many dentists that give to charities, write off balances to help those having trouble and/or loosing jobs. They help those in need in many different ways. This is a wonderful idea and I hope it spreads!

I think its great that the Doctors had the forethought to give their employees the chance to regift, perse.
In this economy there are many people who need help. Some too proud to say they need help. I can only hope that the cards make someone's Holidays a little brighter.
Thank you Gazette for reporting this story.

Dr. Agard is a great dentist and I haven't one single complaint about his staff. I applaud them not only for their kindness but for doing it with no expectation of acknowledgement or kudos. This, to me, is the TRUE spirit of Christmas!
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nenni: I have a BlackBerry. Even if I paid full retail for it (which I didn't), it wouldn't put a dent in a) a regular check-up or b)the average premium for family coverage for insurance. Remember, BadgerCare is also for those who are also self-employed and those who do not have access to employer sponsored healthcare. And, often times, it is not free: the patient is paying a premium to the state (granted it is at a discounted rate...but it's not the m.a. of yore). It's not just for self-entitled slobs who have a lot of bling.
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Kudos again to Drs. Agard and Lipker and their staff.

I think that this is a wonderful idea to help give some family a little extra for the holiday. Anyone that donates to the non-profit organizations in our community already knows that these Dentists help many of our local programs.

I wish I knew but I can only guess it has to do with the budget. You'd be amazed at the amount of Medicare write offs we do. With the number of people in need of assistance growing due to the high rate of unemployment, I don't expect it to improve anytime soon.

Nenni why isn't the state required to pay more?

I think that Badgercare is a wonderful thing for those folks who are doing their best to make ends meet but just need a little extra help. What gets me are the people with Badgercare who walk into the clinics with Bluetooths, the newest cellphones, fancy manicures and jewelry, the latest fashions, and reeking of cigarettes, and they act like they are ENTITLED to the best care there is. I work in health care and see this sort of thing all too often. Funny how they have money to spend on those things but not on health care. It's people like that who give "state aid" a really bad rap. It's no wonder that more healthcare providers choose not to accept Badgercare. That, and they only get paid at a rate of about 34 cents on the dollar.

Do they offer their patients that have Badger care their services?

I am choosing to look at adriankoqueen's comment as a suggestion and not as a criticism. Maybe this person was not aware of services that may be offered to those without insurance. Thank you msleo for presenting that information in such a courteous and positive manner.

What a great gift and I love that movie!!!!!!!!!! As far as the volunteer dentists (very few) the ones that do are awesome!!!!

adriankoqueen - I work in a dental office and $50 will NOT pay for a cleaning! And you also stated "sure would be nice if these dentists would help the community with dental services to people who have no ins" - MANY dentist do that. It's called Health Net. The dentists volunteer their time to help those without insurance. I believe you need to see a doctor and request some 'happy pills'!

A generous gesture brought to light and someone complains they should do more. What did you do this year adriankoqueen to help someone in need??

Don't ya just love it. Here's a very nice, inspiring story about a little act of charity and the very first person to post a comment harumphs that they ought to do more.
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Typical, typical, typical . . . .

adriankoqueen - I suspect there's a fair amount of dental work that is done gratis already.

sure would be nice if these dentists would help the community with dental services to people who have no ins. the 50.00 gift card would at least pay for a cleaning