Dental Insurance Research Papers

Oral health has a direct impact on the general health, hence, it is important that all Canadians have adequate access to dental care services. Over the years successive Governments have reduced financial support to programs delivering dental care to most vulnerable populations. As a result, many low income families and other vulnerable groups have been unable to access dental care. There is further escalation in the disparities in oral health care among Canadians, as the number of Canadians losing dental care benefits continues to increase. Also, higher oral health care costs can be expected in the near future due to shortage of health care professionals.

Good oral health is important for a person's sense of well being and quality of life (Fiske, 2001). Inadequate oral hygiene can lead to pain, tooth loss, oral disease,

4. Diabetic patients. People suffering from diabetes are at a higher risk of having gum diseases and other oral problems.

In Dr. Parson’s presentation, I learned that there are still many seniors with out dental insurance. This is sad because the population by 2030 is going to double and more will eventually need treatment done by a dentist. According to her presentation oral care is not a concern to the nursing home staff. Some families show up to brush their family members teeth. With the limited financial resources for dental care these patients have it is one of their barriers to getting treatment done if needed or even cleaning. Therefore, we as dental hygienist can help make a difference by going out to the community and offering dental care education to the nursing staff because they must first know how to take care of their oral health before taking care

As the number of older Americans continue to rise, along with dental practitioners who are entering retirement, it would benefit this under-served population for the dental profession to develop new models of mid- level care. To expand training as well as additional licensing for dental hygienists, along with more training for other health care professionals would be a great beginning towards improved access to care (Overview of oral health,

While most of the patients I interacted with were seeking non-dental care, I met patients who were seeking care to health conditions that stem from their oral health such as oral abscesses, which our team was unable to treat except for prescribing antibiotics or painkillers. I encountered similar situations when I shadowed physicians in the emergency room of hospitals, observing a variety of craniofacial disorders originating from a preventable tooth decay. From these observations, I learned that patients often did not receive treatment that addressed the root of their problems: their oral health. As the result, I learned that many physicians saw the same patient repeatedly for problems that would otherwise be easily prevented through proper preventive dental care. Determining to address the unmet needs for accessible preventive dental care, I decided to pursue a career in dentistry so that I can provide a positive and meaningful impact to the underserved community on their oral health and ultimately their overall

Research studies have indicated that the elderly Hispanic-American population residing along the Texas-Mexico border has minimal access to healthcare as well as inadequate use of preventive and screening services. The elderly population in El Paso, Texas is speculated to increase by 21.8% between 2014 to 2019 for the age group between 70 to 74 and 11.7% for the age group between 75 to 79. Unfortunately, many oral healthcare professionals are avoiding geriatric certification as a result of the low fees associated with Medicare and Medicaid and the bothersome paperwork that is often affiliated with the elderly, low-income, and minority patient. Based upon the Healthy People 2020 objectives for issues that are applicable to older adults; the objective to be addressed within this review report is the objective of increasing the proportion of dentists with geriatric certification. The specific research question to be addressed is “What are various factors that might be inhibiting dentists from attaining their geriatric certification and what are some strategies to overcome these obstacles and further facilitate this objective?” While the main priority should be to advocate for further health promotion of oral care in the elderly population and increasing the numbers of elderly adults that are able to understand the health benefits of oral care; various factors among the dentistry profession and elderly population must also be addressed. These factors might include ethnic

Many low income areas have dental therapists as part of their local dental team. Many people in these areas have never been to a dentist or do not go every six months as recommended this poses many other health problems. There has been case studies and data showing that in these areas dental health

Dental insurance coverage is a key determinant on whether to seek care or not. The exclusion of our mouths from the rest of our body parts and not receiving the care it requires is quite impossible to rationalize (McClymont, 2015). Dental care is essential in the maintenance of good oral health and in the identification of symptoms of systemic conditions that most likely are manifested through the mouth. As striking and conspicuous as it may sound, Canada has indeed a type of health care system wherein mouth is excepted as a part of the body. As a matter of fact, our lips, tongues, and throats are securely covered while our teeth and gums are left out from the privilege. The most common infectious disease in the world are dental diseases, and the fact that many health issues can be first diagnosed through the oral cavity validates its importance and co-relevance to the rest of our body. Studies have linked poor oral health such as severity of gum infection to AIDS, first stages of osteoporosis, reveal nutritional deficiencies, immune disorders, cancer, and so on and so forth. Xerostomia or dry mouth for an instance is often a symptom of undetected diabetes. Diabetic patients have higher risks of gum infection caused by increased blood sugar, thickening of blood vessels resulting to hindered healing process that is why they are obligated to undergo pre-medication as a form

After all, we have gladly provided exceptional care in our offices – how can we ethically fail to address the need for ongoing dental care for those who may have many years still ahead of them but lack the ability to come to us? (Brown, 5)

While the private sector provides excellent quality of oral health care for its patients, many vulnerable groups have difficulty with access.2 It is also these vulnerable groups who demonstrate extremely high levels of oral health disease. According to a 2014 report issued by the Canadian Academy of Health Services (CAHS), the following represent Canada’s most vulnerable groups: individuals with low incomes; younger age children living in low-income families; individuals working without dental insurance; elderly populations with low incomes and/or living in institutions; aboriginal people, immigrants/refugees; people with disabilities; and, populations living in rural/remote communities.2 The CAHS authors report that increasingly and in light of challenging economic times, families from lower-middle income strata are also demonstrating difficulty with accessing oral health care (this is partially attributable to an increasing tendency toward part-time employment rather than full-time employment with benefits).

Dental care coverage is much less dominant than medical care coverage in the United States. When compared between medical and dental coverage of adults over the age of 21, about 15 percent have no form of medical care coverage, but over 45 percent have no form of dental care coverage (Brown & Manski, 2004; Buchmueller, Miller, & Vujicic, 2014). Moreover, Americans over 65 continue to be the age group with

In Canada, each province provides some form of oral health coverage, however, they frequently cover children, seniors, immigrants and refugees8. Therefore, leaving the rest of the population to provide their own dental needs. The oral health care coverage at the provincial levels varies significantly and is neither comprehensive nor universal (refer to Appendix B). The crucial gaps and lack of service standards across the Canada can be attributed to lack of clear oral health policy and the nature of the Canadian governance, health care is largely the responsibility of provincial level.3

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One core issue at the forefront of adding oral health care to the list of medically necessary services in Canada is financing. Oral diseases are estimated to be the fourth–most expensive diseases to treat in most developed countries (Petersen et al., 2005; Petersen, 2003). The high cost associated with oral health care, coupled with economic challenges has forced many governments around the world to reduce their health care expenditure (Leake & Birch, 2008). In Canada, some provincial governments provide limited but essential levels of oral health care coverage for vulnerable and needy groups such as children and older persons (Quiñonez, 2013). For instance, in the 1950s Newfoundland and Laborador had a province wide dental care program (Leake, 2006). Other provinces such as Manitoba, Bristish Columbia, Saskatchewan, Quebec, Nova Scotia, Alberta and the Norhtwest Territories followed suit with dental health programs for children and seniors during the 1970s and 1980s (Leake, 2006). However, the need to balance public operating budgets and reduce massive public debts led to the restructuring of the health care system, as well as, a financial squeeze in public health funding (David Naylor, 1999). This ultimately led to reduced public funding for oral health services, resulting in cancellation of provincial dental programs for children and seniors (Leake, 2006).