AGD Applauds Congressional Approval Of SCHIP Reauthorization Bills - Urges Inclusion Of Dental Provisions In Final Bill, USA

Main Category: Medicare / Medicaid / SCHIP
Also Included In: Dentistry
Article Date: 14 Aug 2007 - 2:00 PDT

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The Academy of General Dentistry (AGD) applauded the approval by both congressional chambers of the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) reauthorization bills.

"Access to care - especially for children - is one of the AGD's top legislative priorities for this year," stated AGD's President, Vincent Mayher, DMD, MAGD. "But we urge Congress to retain the important dental provisions in each chamber's respective legislation in the final conference report and bill to be worked on over the next two months," said Dr. Mayher.

The House bill (HR 3162) includes many very important dental provisions to help ensure that children receive essential oral health care services. The bill adds guaranteed dental coverage for children enrolled in SCHIP. The legislation also provides for a study by the Government Accountability Office on access to dental services in underserved areas. Finally, it states that benchmark coverage can be no less protective for children than the coverage offered in other benchmark options. This provision ensures wrap-around dental coverage for children whose parents have some health insurance, but not for dental services. The bill passed the House on August 1, 2007 by a vote of 225-204.

The Senate SCHIP bill (S 1893) does not include these same dental provisions, but does provide $200 million in new federal funding for states to carry out programs and activities that are designed to improve the availability of dental services and strengthen dental coverage for targeted low-income children. The states must provide a detailed description of the programs proposed, quality and outcome performance measures, and conduct an assessment of the effectiveness of these programs. The Senate passed this bill on August 2 by a vote of 68-31.

"Approximately 23 million children have no dental coverage in the United States today," said Janet Kopenhaver, AGD's Washington Lobbyist. "SCHIP has allowed millions of children to obtain insurance, including dental coverage. Yet dental is often cut first when states are low on funding, and therefore it is essential that the final bill include a dental guarantee. When a state stops providing dental benefits, it leaves SCHIP-eligible children and their families with little affordable options for oral health care," added Kopenhaver.

Four to five million children in America suffer from a dental disease that limits their ability to lead normal and pain-free lives. More than 850,000 school days are missed each year by children who are affected by dental pain.

AGD's members have been contacting their legislators urging them to include a dental guarantee, as well as the important dental wrap around coverage in the SCHIP reauthorization bill. "Too many children miss school, suffer from pain and infection, and have trouble with speech and eating due to poor oral health care," Dr. Mayher asserted. "They need and deserve the proper oral health care to succeed in school and life," he concluded.

Dental care is a basic and necessary health care service by children, and can prevent systemic and oral disease. Early and preventive treatment has a proven track record of cost effectiveness, especially among low-income children. The success of SCHIP in decreasing the number of uninsured children has been phenomenal, and needs to be continued. AGD members ask legislators participating in the conference to include all these dental provisions in the final bill. "Our nation's low-income children deserve it," said Dr. Mayher.

The SCHIP was authorized by Congress in 1997 to expand public health care availability to low-income children and families. At that time, SCHIP gave $40 billion to states for 10 years to provide coverage for children living in families who earned too much to qualify for Medicaid, but not enough to afford private insurance. Today, this successful program covers more than six million children.

The AGD is a professional association of more than 35,000 general dentists dedicated to staying up-to-date in the profession through continuing education. Founded in 1952, the AGD has grown to become the world's second largest dental association, which is the only association that exclusively represents the needs and interests of general dentists. More than 772,000 persons are employed directly in the field of general dentistry. A general dentist is the primary care provider for patients of all ages and is responsible for the diagnosis, treatment, management and overall coordination of services related to patients' oral health needs. Learn more about AGD member dentists or find more information on dental health topics at http://www.agd.org/public/.

http://www.agd.org