title: Oral health checkup: progress in tough fiscal times?
abstract: Almost ten years after the surgeon general's report designating dental disease as the "silent epidemic," the nation continues to struggle with adequate access to and utilization of dental services. This is particularly true for low-income individuals, who experience more than twice the amount of untreated dental disease as their higher-income peers. This issue brief reviews sources of dental coverage for low-income children and adults and the challenges these programs face. It highlights some examples of state Medicaid initiatives to improve access and utilization for children and the progress of these initiatives. Finally, it examines the potential effects of the economy on dental coverage for low-income populations.
authors.forename: Cynthia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Shirk
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003729:Dental Care / Q000191:economics* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D019140:Dental Care for Children / Q000191:economics* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D003731:Dental Caries / Q000191:economics / Q000453:epidemiology; D003777:Dental Prophylaxis / Q000191:economics* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000191:economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D007347:Insurance, Dental / Q000191:economics* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D007349:Insurance, Health, Reimbursement / Q000191:economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D008484:Medicaid / Q000191:economics; D008875:Middle Aged; D009909:Oral Health; D010349:Patient Compliance; D011203:Poverty; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013219:State Government; D014481:United States