America’s Oral Health is in Crisis

America’s Oral Health is in Crisis

More than a decade since the U.S. Surgeon General called America’s poor oral health a “silent epidemic,” oral health diseases remain prevalent among the nation’s underserved populations. Blacks, Hispanics, and Native Americans bear the burden of poor oral health more than any other racial or ethnic groups, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In the largely majority-minority town of Windsor, North Carolina, the unabated crisis is playing out. A new study by the local government says a shortage of dentists and lack of access to dental care is to blame. In 2010, there were only 15 dentists for 109,000 low-income residents in the county. And almost no private dentist in the area will accept Medicaid because the reimbursement rates are below market rate.


Oral health is critical to overall health.


Reform efforts should focus on integrating oral health into health care and increasing Medicaid reimbursement rates for dentists.


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