The impact of underutilization of preventive dental care by adult Medicaid participants

Abstract

To ascertain the financial impact associated with the underutilization of preventive dental care for adults enrolled in Medicaid. Methods: We used adult claims data for patients aged 21-64 in the IBM Watson Marketscan Medicaid database. Enrollees were included if they had at least one dental claim in 2019 and were continuously enrolled between 2014 and 2019. We then evaluated the costs of their dental care in 2019, based on the number of years of preventive dental care they received between 2014 and 2018. We also assessed Emergency Department (ED) utilization for dental conditions, oral surgeries, and dental-related opioid prescriptions. Results: The average Medicaid enrollee with five continuous years of preventive care prior to 2019 experienced 43% lower costs than an individual who received no preventive dental care at all. Most of the savings were a result of fewer oral surgeries. A Medicaid enrollee with no preventive dental visits was eight times more likely to have an ED visit for a nontraumatic dental condition (NTDC), seven times more likely to have oral surgery and six times more likely to receive a dental-related opioid prescription compared to those who had a dental prevention visit every year in the 5-year lookback period. Conclusions: Regular preventive dental care in the lookback period was associated with significant savings in overall dental care costs when compared to dental care costs for those individuals who received no or few preventive visits. Prior preventive dental care was also associated with lower rates of ED-NTDC utilization, oral surgery, and dental-related opioid prescriptions.

Examining rural-urban disparities in perceived need for health care services among adults with disabilities

“…The literature highlights the importance of regular health and preventive services for managing health care costs and outcomes ( 1 – 3 ), as well as disparities in health care access and utilization across rural and urban subgroups ( 6 – 8 ). Disparities in access and utilization appear to translate into higher rates of chronic health conditions, mortality, and disability for rural, relative to urban populations ( 12 – 14 ).…”

“…Timely access to preventive care such as regular check-ups, health screenings, immunizations, and dental care can lower the risk of developing health complications, identify emerging health issues, reduce the need for aggressive interventions, and lower overall health care costs (1)(2)(3). Despite these substantial advantages, however, many people choose to forego preventive care, particularly in rural places (4)(5)(6).…”

Remineralization Agents and Nanopharmaceutical Approaches That Have an Important Place in Dental Therapies and Preventive Dentistry: Traditional Review

“…Koruyucu diş hekimliği ise rutin oral muayeneler, diş temizliği, florür uygulamaları ve dolgu malzemeleri gibi önleyici prosedürler, eğitim ve ileriye dönük rehberlik ve teşhis prosedürlerinin bir kombinasyonudur. 6 Koruyucu diş hekimliğinin amacı, invaziv restoratif tedaviden ziyade diş çürümesinin erken önlenmesidir. Bununla birlikte, ağız hijyeni ve florlamayı teşvik etmedeki çabalara rağmen en yaygın ağız hastalığı olan diş çürükleri, halk sağlığı için hâlâ önemli problemlerden biridir.…”

Variations in temporal trends in non‐traumatic dental condition related emergencies

“…Non‐traumatic dental condition (NTDC)‐related emergency department (ED) visits are a growing dental public health concern [1–5]. According to a report by American Dental Association, in the year 2017 there were 2.1 million NTDC‐related ED visits in the United States costing around $2.7 billion [1, 3–5]. EDs are a vital component of a health care system as they are accessible to every individual irrespective of their ability to pay for care [6].…”

“…Non-traumatic dental condition (NTDC)-related emergency department (ED) visits are a growing dental public health concern [1][2][3][4][5]. According to a report by American Dental Association, in the year 2017 there were 2.1 million NTDC-related ED visits in the United States costing around $2.7 billion [1,[3][4][5]. EDs are a vital component of a health care system as they are accessible to every individual irrespective of their ability to pay for care [6].…”