ADA.org: A-Z Topics: Access to Oral Health Care

While most Americans seek care from a dentist regularly, some individuals and families face challenges accessing dental care. These Americans, including racial and ethnic minorities, people with disabilities, and those whose families are economically disadvantaged, may also suffer a disproportionate share of dental disease. Access challenges include difficulty getting to a dental office, prioritizing dental care among other health crises, overcoming financial barriers, and navigating government assistance programs. These dental patients may need special financial arrangements, help accessing a dental office, or special oral hygiene instruction. Also, basic awareness of oral health issues for many Americans may be quite limited because of cultural or language barriers or problems with literacy.

This section of ADA.org provides information for dentists and their staff members to help assist vulnerable people in their offices and in the community. Examples of community programs to improve oral health are also included. This information is also a resource for community leaders, law- and policy-makers and anyone else interested in improving access to oral health care for the millions of Americans who currently lack it.

State and Community Models for Improving Access to Dental Care for the Underserved—A White Paper by the American Dental Association–October 2004

Over the past few years, dentists, policy makers and other stakeholders have used innovative approaches to improve access to and utilization of dental care for underserved individuals. This 2004 American Dental Association white paper examines five models, which can be adopted and modified to meet specific needs in your area. Three take a comprehensive approach to increasing dentist participation in public programs and improving utilization of dental services. Two community models increased access to care by expanding dental delivery sites.

This white paper is of interest to a variety of stakeholders: the dental community, health care professionals, policy makers and public health and human service advocates who know all too well that oral health is integral to overall health, self-esteem, ability to learn and employability. This white paper is the latest in a series of American Dental Association publications and initiatives aimed at bringing together many communities of interest and stimulating improvements in access to care for vulnerable individuals and families.

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Federal and State Legislative Activities

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ADA News

ADA supports outreach program for uninsured (April 14, 2006)
Medicaid dental coverage for children gets boost (Nov. 1, 2005)
Grants help older adults (Oct. 7, 2005)
CDC, NIH report improvements in American oral health (Aug. 26, 2005)
Head Start improves access to dental care: report (June 10, 2005)
Study: States working to reach more kids with dental care (Jan. 24, 2005)
ADA white paper targets dental care for the underserved (Nov. 4, 2004)
Addressing oral health disparities (June 10, 2004)
Special Olympics Special Smiles grows worldwide (May 13, 2004)
Presidents-elect focus on access (March 1, 2004)
DDS program has waiting list of 12,000 underserved nationwide (Feb. 24, 2004)
Dentists 'adopt' families in need (Jan. 13, 2004)

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The Journal of the American Dental Association
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Early Orthodontic Treatment as a Means to Increase Access for Children Enrolled in Medicaid in Washington State (January 2006)
A Job Well Done, But Still a Long Way to Go (November 2005)
Perceived Social Status, Language and Identified Dental Home Among Hispanics in Florida (November 2005)
Ohio Dental Care Providers’ Treatment of Young Children, 2002 (November 2005)
Oral Health Findings for HIV-infected Adult Medical Patients from the HIV Cost and Services Utilization Study (October 2005)
The Dental Safety Net in Connecticut (October 2005)
Access to Dental Care: Solving the Problem for Underserved Populations
(November 2004)
Improving America's Access to Care: The National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research Addresses Oral Health Disparities (October 2004)
Dental Visits Among Older U.S. Adults, 1999: The Roles of Dentition Status and Cost (August 2004)
Dental Visits Among Hispanics in the United States, 1999 (July 2004)
The Economic Impact of Dentistry (March 2004)
Michigan Medicaid's Healthy Kids Dental Program: An Assessment of the
First 12 Months (November 2003)
Recent Trends in Dental Visits and Private Dental Insurance, 1989 and 1999
(May 2003)
The Importance of Productivity in Estimating Need for Dentists (October 2002)
Pit and fissure sealants (September 2002)
Trends in Caries Among Adults 18-45 Years Old (July 2002)
Is Service Still a Part of Dentistry? (July 2002)
The Impact of a State Children's Health Insurance Program on Access to
Dental Care (June 2002)
The Funding of Dental Services among U.S. Adults Aged 18 Years and Older:
Recent Trends in Expenditures and Sources of Funding (May 2002)
The Funding of Dental Services among U.S. Adults Aged 2 to 17 Years: Recent Trends in Expenditures and Sources of Funding (April 2002)
Prevalence and trends in enamel fluorosis in the United States from the 1930s to the 1980s (February 2002)
The Digital Transformation of Oral Health Care: Teledentistry and Electronic Commerce (February 2001)
Dental caries prevalence and dental care utilization among the very old
(November 2000)
The science and practice of caries prevention (July 2000)
Risk of enamel fluorosis in nonfluoridated and optimally fluoridated populations: consideration for the dental professional (June 2000)
Trends in Untreated Caries in Primary Teeth: of Children 2 to 10 Years Old
(January 2000)
Sociodemographic distribution of pediatric dental caries: NHANES III, 1988-1994
(September 1998)

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