Midwest states expand telemedicine, allow dental therapists among steps to open wider access to dental services

Often overlooked in the national debates and discussions about health insurance, dental care is having something of a moment in the Midwest as states embrace ways to expand oral health access. The need is great, according to the Pew Charitable Trusts: More than 56.7 million people in the United States live in areas with shortages of dentists, and only about one-third of dentists accept public insurance, which limits access for the 72 million children and adults on Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP).The Midwest has 1,448, or one-quarter, of the nation’s 5,834 designated Health Professional Shortage Areasfor dental care, according to the U.S. Health Resources & Services Administration. Which is why John Grant, project manager of Pew’s Dental Campaign, says the biggest problem “as far as the states go, especially in the Midwest, is expanding the dental workforce.”“Basic dental care is out of reach for most Americans,” Grant says. “Unlike the flu, dental decay doesn’t get better with time; it gets worse. For a lot of people, there’s a quality-of-life issue; people miss work because of pain or can’t get a job because their teeth look bad.”