Most doctors, dentists and patients agree – good oral health is important to your overall health. Yet, many Americans aren’t getting the care they want and need.
An estimated 74 million Americans have no access to oral health care – that's nearly double the number of people without health insurance. One in three Americans don’t have dental insurance, three in four patients have experienced a barrier to care, and half of patients surveyed worry about their oral health. In fact, oral health is a bigger concern than heart, eye, digestive, gastrointestinal, skin or mental health concerns.
When it comes to taking care of those pearly whites, experts say prevention is the preferred approach. It’s also important to make it easier for people to get the care they need. That’s leading to some innovative ideas for improving care and expanding access to oral health services, including:
- Increasing medical-dental integration and collaboration
- Expanding access through non-traditional locations - like schools and community health centers
- Improving dental insurance coverage for adults in Medicaid and Medicare
Most Americans don’t realize that Medicare doesn’t currently include dental coverage, but believe that it should. Conversations underway in the Nation’s Capital could change that – and may lead to expanding Medicare coverage to include dental benefits.
Alison Corcoran, Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer at DentaQuest discusses the gaps in care in the U.S., the future of oral health in this country, and what can be done to change a system that is failing millions of Americans.
This interview is sponsored by DentaQuest.
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