Report addresses access-to-care issues in Mich.

Looking to help more Michigan residents get access to dental care, the 30-member Michigan Access to Oral Health Care Work Group -- convened by the Michigan Dental Association (MDA) -- has issued a new report outlining concrete strategies to help ensure people aren't forced to go without dental care.

"This brutal economy has heightened a long-standing problem: That when it comes to oral healthcare, many folks in Michigan simply can't get the care they need," said Norm Palm, D.D.S., M.S., a Grand Rapids dentist who chaired the group. "Our aim is to offer workable solutions that reflect a broad consensus -- we want change to happen."

The report, "A United Voice for Oral Health," was prepared by Lansing's Public Sector Consultants and reflects the thinking of the broadest group yet assembled to tackle the access problem. It calls for recognizing the vital but often overlooked role of oral health in overall physical health.

"One of our goals is to help the public and policymakers understand the importance of oral healthcare," said Gary Jeffers, D.M.D., M.S., MDA president and an associate professor at the University of Detroit Mercy School of Dentistry. "Regular preventive dental appointments can uncover oral health problems before they become more serious and more costly to treat."

Michigan eliminated dental care for adults on Medicaid effective July 1, 2009. Since then, many of the 400,000 patients cut from the federal-state program have been forced to instead go to hospital emergency rooms. Care there is more expensive, driving up costs for taxpayers. Untreated dental disease can lead to other costly health problems, including diabetes, heart disease, and cancer.

Two-thirds of the work group members, including physicians, dental colleges, public health departments, dental hygienists, and insurers, agreed on each of the report's 17 recommendations. Children and families are a main focus of the recommendations, which include:

• Find dedicated funding to ensure dental care for low-income children and adults.
• Make sure physicians and nurses are trained to do oral screenings and create partnerships so that the responsibility for oral health is shared between medical and oral health professionals.
• Step up education efforts on the link between oral health and physical health, especially via social media.
• Issue state guidelines outlining physician responsibilities in oral health.
• Study how other health providers, such as dental hygienists or nurses, might deliver oral health care.

"It's just not acceptable when 25% of Michigan's third-grade children have untreated dental disease," Dr. Palm said. "We must have a comprehensive approach that ensures care for all children -- and adults -- and helps us reach our ultimate goal of preventing dental disease."

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