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One medical or dental appointment can quickly drain your wallet. Should you pay for your medical bill with a credit card? Find out how a 0% APR card may help. [[{“value”:”
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Finding out that you have a costly medical bill coming your way can be stressful and upsetting. Unfortunately, the cost of medical care can add up fast. If you’re unprepared for an added expense like this, it can negatively impact your checking account balance.
Even if you have medical or dental insurance, you may be responsible for paying a large portion of the cost for treatment. That’s because many medical expenses aren’t fully covered by insurance. Do you anticipate getting an expensive dental procedure done soon? Could a 0% APR credit card help make this medical expense more manageable? Let’s find out.
Avoid credit card interest with a 0% APR credit card
If you expect a costly dental bill soon and are worried about how it will impact your finances, consider using a 0% APR card to pay for your care. With these credit cards, you can take advantage of 0% APR throughout the promotional period.
This strategy can help you avoid interest charges for a limited time while you pay off the expense. When looking at 0% APR credit cards to apply for, you’ll want to choose one that provides 0% APR on purchases. Some cards offer 0% APR on balance transfers for those who transfer existing credit card balances — and some offer this for purchases and balance transfers.
You should also ensure you can pay off the entire dental expense before the promotional period ends to avoid paying interest. If you carry a balance beyond the no-interest timeline, you’ll be charged interest fees, so it’s important to have a plan for paying off the debt.
Many of these cards offer no interest for 12 months or more, giving you additional time to make payments without worrying about interest charges. Spreading the total debt over equal monthly payments for a year could make it more manageable than paying it off immediately.
Here’s an example of how to use a 0% APR credit card to make dental care more affordable: Let’s imagine you have a $1,500 dental procedure and pay with a credit card that offers 0% APR on purchases for 12 months. Making $125 payments every month for 12 months will eliminate the debt and avoid interest. This makes the cost of care much more manageable.
A good option for medical care such as dental work
If you have minimal savings and don’t want to rack up credit card debt, this is a great way to pay for medical expenses like dental work. Instead of using one of the existing credit cards in your wallet, a 0% APR credit card can help you avoid interest charges and stay out of debt.
I’ve used this payment strategy myself. I recently found out that I needed a costly dental procedure completed. While I have dental insurance, only about 30% of the cost was covered through my insurer.
That meant I needed to figure out how to cover the rest of the bill. While I’m fortunate to have savings, the last thing I wanted to do was drain my emergency fund. So, before getting the procedure done, I opened a 0% APR credit card.
I’ve been making regular monthly payments and am chipping away at the debt. I’m on track to eliminate the debt entirely before the 0% promotional period ends. This credit card allowed me to prioritize my health, avoid using my emergency savings, and remain debt-free.
If you’re considering financing options for an upcoming medical expense, take a close look at the best 0% APR credit cards.
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