Kentucky's Low-Income Residents Lack Dental Insurance, Dental Care, NYT Reports

Main Category: Dentistry
Also Included In: Health Insurance / Medical Insurance
Article Date: 03 Jan 2008 - 6:00 PDT

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Kentucky is "among the worst states nationally in the proportion of low-income residents served by free or subsidized dental clinics, and less than a fourth of the state's dentists regularly take Medicaid, according to 2005 federal data," the New York Times reports in a look at dental health among state residents. Kentucky has the highest proportion of adults under 65 without teeth, and about half of state residents lack dental insurance, according to the Times.

Until August 2006, the state had one of the lowest Medicaid reimbursement rates nationwide, which contributed to a shortage of dentists in low-income and rural areas. Julie Watts McKee, the state's dental director, said that in 2006, Medicaid reimbursements for children's dental services were raised by about 30%. However, despite the increase, which was funded by cutting orthodontic benefits, reimbursement rates still are about 50% below the market rate, according to Ken Rich, the state's dental director for Medicaid. Reimbursement rates for adult dental care are about 65% below the market rate, Rich said.

One of the leading causes of missed school days for Kentucky children is pain caused by dental problems, according to state health officials, and nearly half of the state's children ages two to four have untreated cavities, while about 10% of state residents are missing all of their teeth, according to 2004 federal data.

Edwin Smith -- a dentist who runs Kids First Dental Care, a free mobile clinic in Kentucky, and who provides no-cost care to about half of the patients at his private practice -- "has seen the extremes of neglect," according to the Times. Smith said, "The level of need is hard to believe until you see it up close" (Urbina, New York Times, 12/24/07).

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