Iowa dental study examines Medicaid participation

An estimated 120,000 adults in Iowa will be newly eligible for dental care through the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act's expansion of Medicaid coverage, but fewer dentists are accepting such patients, according to a survey by the University of Iowa.

The survey was done in late 2013 to investigate current access to dental care in Iowa, assess the capacity of the current dental safety net, and identify gaps in the system, according to the university. The survey findings were published in December.

The survey queried all private dentists in the state to determine their level of participation in Medicaid and their attitudes toward the program and treating underserved populations.

Almost all of the dentists surveyed agreed that dental care should be available for poor patients, and a majority recognized that the Medicaid program is essential to providing low-income patients with needed dental care, the researchers found.

The survey findings indicate that 16% of Iowa dentists are willing to accept all new Medicaid patients without conditions, down from 42% in 1995 and 62% in 1992. Another 42% of dentists would accept some new Medicaid patients.

Additionally, 85% of Iowa dentists who do not accept new Medicaid patients also reported that they had not seriously considered changing their position. Moreover, more than half of those who accept at least some new patients said they considered dropping out the program.

The researchers also found that 58% of Iowa dentists report accepting either all or some new Medicaid patients, down from 64% in 1995.

While all dentists agree that Medicaid patients have more oral health needs, they cited complicated paperwork, low reimbursements, denial of payment, and canceled appointments among the reasons for turning down new Medicaid patients.

The DentaQuest Foundation funded the study.