Preserving the Financial Safety Net

May 2005

Dental Benefits Improve Access for Vulnerable Populations

Quality dental coverage is essential to assuring access to dental services and improving oral health:

• The 29 million children in Medicaid and SCHIP are 1.5 times more likely to access dental care than are uninsured children.
• Children covered by Medicaid are 3.5 times less likely to have an unmet dental need than uninsured children.
• 72% of adults with an unmet dental “want” report that the major reason is financial.

To read this policy brief in its entirety, please download the above attached PDF.