My daughter has been a patient for well over 2 years, it was estimated that she wear braces for up…read moreto 2 years. No explanation was really given as to why it's taking longer, they just keep scheduling follow-ups. Makes me wonder if it's cause they want to just bill our insurance. If that really is the case I will be furious, don't make my poor daughter keep her braces on longer for more $. What I am most upset about is their appointment reminder system admittedly had a glitch and a reminder text which I am use to getting was not given for her appt. that was scheduled 2 months ago! If it is their system that failed then we should not be billed, period. I tried to fight it because it really isn't right but the office manager demands I pay because a fee was already waved for a previous missed appt. which might I add was due to an emergency. She was also trying to tell me what she does to remind herself of appts. which is ridiculous, telling me that's it's my responsibility to remember and they give reminder slips which should suffice but from 2 months ago, really?!!! I am getting greedy vibes for sure and can't wait until my daughter gets her braces off, I would never go back here for my other daughter or refer anyone to go here.

Dr. Lauritzen and staff go above and beyond to make my child's experience and smile the best!read more

I came to Dr. Chad as a university student years ago for Invisalign treatment. I am happy to say I…read morehave completed my treatment and am extremely happy with the results. Going through my before and afters was a very proud moment for me! Dr. Chad was extremely patient with me throughout this whole experience. In the middle of treatment I moved to San Diego and then San Francisco and he was able to see me on random weekends/Saturdays when I was in town. He also went above and beyond to personally send me my new trays, keep in contact with me so I could show him my progress, and send me home with a generous amount of chewies and other necessities during Invisalign treatment. Thank you Dr. Chad for sticking with me and being patient throughout my journey! It's been a fun ride and so well worth it.

Over all they are very nice but the guy who was doing my braces walked a off saying he had to do…read moresomething, did it and then still hasn't come back,( in the chair as of now). I like the idea of the reward system for community involvement, although I sincerely enjoyed my visit I think that I like the older dr Rowan in Mariposa more, but as the closed I am forced to come here. The service is slightly slow. I have been waiting for like 10 minutes in the middle of my appointment. They are very good about schedule appointments but they don't do it right after your appointment and you have to call them. Kind of frustrating because I am forgetting to call the ( or rather my mother is) but still the music was good and all the people were nice and the quality of the braces is great and they are gentle,( most of the time). *edit Still in the chair after 20 minutes, did they forget about me?

Dr Richard Rowan is amazing, his staff are all really nice and helpful. When you walk in there is…read morealways someone there to greet you. You never have to wait, the bathrooms and office are always clean. Dr Rowan and his staff truly care about all their patients. They treat you like family. I highly recommend Dr Rowan.

From the owner: Dr. Richard Rowan has been working as a Board Certified orthodontic specialist providing the best…read moreorthodontic care for patients in the Merced and Mariposa areas since 1982. Dr. Rowan's experience as an orthodontist is coupled with genuine concern for his patients. All of our staff is dedicated to your comfort and prompt attention with our primary goal to help you to achieve a healthy and bright smile.

This location is great! I definitely would come again. They tooken care of me right when I walked…read morein. Waits aren't long and the dentists are really professional here and friendly. I just got my temp crown in and I feel like a normal person who can eat normally again.

If I could leave no stars I would. Absolutely horrible service & you get ignored the entire time…read moreyou're there last time I went from 10 am to-4 pm waiting ...and again I went and waited 5 hours to be ignored for most of my time being there. They gave me numbing stuff and never came back to check if it worked or started working until an hour later and by that time it was wearing off a little & I was in pain while they were completing my fillings but didn't want to wait again so I just dealt with the pain.

I received good care from the dentists here, but I found their business side predatory and…read moredishonest. I showed up for a routine cleaning to find that they no longer accepted Delta Insurance (they did not inform me of this change ahead of time). I chose to cancel my appointment and my wife's, which was scheduled soon after. The business manager met with me, and said that because they hoped to keep us as customers (and hoped to resume taking Delta by our next appointments), they would waive the charge for both my appointment and wife's if we did not cancel them. All went well until they were unable to resume taking Delta, and we had to change to another dentist (which provided superior care AND covered 100% of our dental expenses under Delta). Then, we suddenly began receiving bills for the appointments the business manager had waived. It seems that if they couldn't get us to pay cash for future appointments, rather than use our insurance (a cost of well over $1000 a year just for cleanings and exams), then they were going to do their best to squeeze what they could out of us, and were not going to let ethics or integrity get in the the way of a little money. I've talked to them on the phone, in person, and written to them. At first, they confirmed that the cost should have been waived. But they just keep sending bills for the amount they previously waived. I don't even know if that office manager still works there, and there's likely no one who now remembers a conversation from that long ago. It's a pain to deal with them constantly trying to collect less than $300 they are not owed. I think it's been two years of harassment from them. But they did me a favor too, and I hope it's one for you too if you're looking for a dentist in Merced. There are so many dishonest dentists preying on patients. I thought I'd found an honest one in El Portal. As stressful as this is, it likely saved me far more money in the long run by forcing me to leave them before getting taking advantage of by their unscrupulous business practices. Steer clear! I know it can be hard to find a new dentist in Merced, but don't settle for a practice you can't trust.

Service I have received has been wonderful from the ladies at the front desk to the wonderful…read moredental staff and being open on a Saturday is a huge plus

Dr is good but billing department is horrible! There's a manipulative lying woman named Elvia who…read moreafter you sign a contracted payment arrangement tries to force you to sign up with a company who pays them in full and then you pay the company payments sort of like after pay with intrest I'm sure But when i declined I was told they can't take my scheduled payments in office anymore all though they could take payment in full or even half this all happened after the 5k balance was paid down to 800..so I told her I'd be happy to pay the remaining balance in full when the job was finished and my daughters braces were coming off but I was not paying in full early since there were already 1 1/2 years passed due on there planned completion date which she blamed covid and blamed my kids mother for not scheduling her appointments and stated it wasn't there job to make appointments for my kid which made zero since since ya know dr's tend to know when they want to see you next but she eventually agreed to me paying in full since she claimed they would be removing her braces in 4 weeks and I agreed to pay that day 4 weeks later.. fast forward a few weeks my daughter goes to her appointment Elvia calls says they are removing her braces and I have to pay I agreed and told them I'd pay then I tell my daughter she's getting her braces off and she says dad my teeth are still crooked on the bottom so I questioned Elvia on this and she says ok so we're not removing them but you still have to pay in full today lol...after I refused to pay until they were ready to remove her braces she decided to tell my kid that they couldn't look at her teeth that day because her dad was being difficult and wouldn't pay! Luckily the dr said no that's not how it works and did the rite thing at looked at her teeth.. then she decided to slander me and complain about me to my child and my child's mother but took no blame herself for being a liar and trying to manipulate me because she's bitter I wouldn't agree with all her lies and excuses anyways long story short since there was a lot more drama I'd just say be careful here unless you like hearing excuses and being manipulated lied to and possibly talked bad about to your child because you defended yourself from miss Elvia

I loved my experience with Dr. Boese. I started out in 2006 and got my braces off in 2009. (It…read morewould have been faster but I would always reschedule with them because I was active in sports). The staff was wonderful and I was always excited to go back in and see everyone. They have continued to help me as an adult with retainers when they break, and the orthodontists are wonderful. Because of the procedure I had done, I only have to wear a retainer once a month (if that). I'm so proud of my teeth and it's all because of Dr. Boese and Dr. Boese Sr.

I would recommend this Orthodontic! Dr Heiner is super friendly and polite! I feel comfortable…read moreattending this practice and the staff is friendly as well. I'm so glad I am getting my teeth worked on through him. I have definitely seen improvements with my bite.

Sadly, I can no longer recommend this practice. My kids have been treated here for about 10 years…read morenow. My daughter's treatment went great and she finished about a year ago. My son's treatment/service has turned into a nightmare over the past year. Here's what we've been dealing with: -A high staff turnover rate. There is never the same workers when we go in. The ones we've interacted with seem very unfamiliar with my son's treatment plan. Heiner seems very impatient with staff at times even making comments to me personally about his frustrations and it makes for some awkward vibes. It was never like this until recently. - We drive 40 minutes each way to go here and have had 2 appointments in the last 2 months where we drove there for nothing. One, he called in sick as we were pulling in the parking lot for our appt. They couldn't even call me, they text me. The other, we went to the appt and they said they felt bad they should have called me and cancelled because he wasn't in and they couldn't help us. There was no respect for our wasted time what so ever. - They no longer answer the phone. I had tried to get thru several times in one day and instead of answer they text back (obv have caller id) and say they will call back. So weird and unprofessional to do biz like this. -Heiner has become frustrated with my son's lack of progress on closing a gap. Has made the comment numerous times that we are causing him to lose money because my son is over treatment time. This made me mad after about the 4th visit hearing this comment so I told him nicely to just remove the braces. He and staff were not happy about that. I was told by a worker there today that we are termed "non-compliant" now so if we need anything further they will "charge us whatever". I have no idea what she means but I don't really care anymore. We are done. -They've been telling me Heiner will call me for 2 months now. No call yet. Today I was told she can get my son an appt to just get his final retainer and end treatment but warned me of a high probability we still won't get to talk to him. To be honest, I don't really know what's going on here. Whether it's just a bad staff with bad communication or if Heiner just isn't into it anymore like he used to be I don't know. But the past year has been really bad for us and I look VERY forward to completing this treatment and being done with the place all together. The vibes are all bad and uncomfortable these days. And it makes me sad the way it is now vs. what it used to be.

The dentist and the staff here are remarkable. The office is always clean and vibrate…read more Upon entry, guardians will notice The "Under the Sea" decor helps create a fun and exciting atmosphere for everyone. There are video games in the lobby for the kiddos and a television usually playing something interesting. My children loved attending here and always enjoyed their experiences. Sadly, we moved to another state and have missed this place greatly! As a mom, it's been challenging finding any dental care that exceeds my expectations like First Step Dental did. I recommend FSD to every mother who wants peace of mind and the care and professionalism of this group.

Nothing but professionals. I have been taking my children here for over ten years and have zero…read morecomplaints.

I had a complicated case but Dr. Hyer and his team worked patiently and gave me the results I…read morewanted. After a few consultations with other dentists/orthodontist I was Slightly discouraged, however Dr. Hyer was able to preserve the teeth I had to give me the result I hoped for. It took time but he was persistent. He is professional and concise. The receptionist Debbie is always friendly and was able to accommodate my unpredictable work schedule.

From the owner: At Hyer Orthodontics in Turlock and Los Banos, we know that creating a great smile is a gift for a…read morelifetime. There is more to braces than just straightening teeth. We want to exceed your expectations. With the advances in modern technology we have seen dramatic improvements in the way we create smiles.

Quality, throughout and caring. Champion was my ortho when I was a child, he remembered me and took…read moregreat care of my kids.

Finally, braces off! Dr. Champion - you rock!…read more It has been a fantastic experience with Dr. Champion and his team of staff. Everyone has been so professional (from the phone to front desk receptionist and orthodontics' assistants at the back). This place feels so warm with full of happy faces. I highly recommend this place. From the bottom of my heart, Dr. Champion thank you so much for giving me the smile that I've always dreamed of. God bless!