USA - Families struggle to get dental care for children
Tooth delay: Families struggle to get dental care for children
By Roberto J. Manzano
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
03/05/2007
Dental Assistant Crystal McFarland, (left) gets ready to work on the teeth of Jenna Freeman,11, as Dr.Harry Scharf a dentist at Family Care Health Centers goes over her chart on last week.
Ten-year-old Justin Croxton had to wait a year before a dentist treated a toothache that hurt whenever he bit into an apple.
His mother, Angela Croxton, said the family of six lived on an annual salary of $40,000 and couldn't afford a private clinic's $200 fee to fill a cavity. Two of her younger sons' doctor visits, allergy and asthma medicines cost about $600 a month. Croxton, 31, is a lactation consultant.
"When I have to weigh one issue against the other, it doesn't make me feel like the parent I should be," Croxton said Thursday. "I shouldn't have to say to Justin, 'Wait for the dental (care) because your brother can't breathe.' Because Justin has been healthier, his concerns have been pushed to the back burner so we can take care of the little ones."
The family, insured through the father's job as a valet manager, lost Medicaid coverage last year. But last week, Justin got his cavity filled at the Carondelet neighborhood Family Care Health Center clinic, which charged $25 for the treatment. The Croxtons, who live in De Soto, often make the hourlong drive to the center because it's one of a handful of clinics that offers affordable dental care. Advertisement
Regular and proper dental care is crucial because an untreated decayed tooth can lead to a costly root canal or a lost tooth.
It meant death for Deamonte Driver, 12, of Prince George's County, Maryland. Deamonte died on Feb. 25 after bacteria from an abscessed tooth spread to his brain. The family, which had no insurance, also had lost Medicaid coverage. Deamonte's mother cited difficulty in locating a dentist who accepted the state-administered health plan.
In Missouri, Medicaid is a $6 billion program that covers about 826,000 low-income residents, 754,000 of whom live in poverty, according to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2005 American Community Survey.
In the St. Louis metro area, almost 11 percent of the population — about 275,000 people — live in poverty. Almost 700,000 Missourians lack health insurance.
Statewide, only 660 of the state's 3,660 licensed dentists accept Medicaid patients, according to the state's department of social services. Locally, a few more than 200 dentists accept Medicaid patients.
Good dental care — for children and adults — prevents worse problems down the road, said Harry R. Scharf, 48, a dentist at the Family Care Health Center clinic in the Forest Park Southeast neighborhood.
"If we can get kids early, maybe they'll have good teeth and won't have so many problems as adults," said Scharf, 48.
Because of inexperience and less developed motor skills, children often are less adept brushing and flossing, said Jeannie Hurocy, a registered dental hygienist at the Carondelet Family Care Health Center.
"We have a lot of kids whose mouths are 'bombed out' — just every tooth in their mouth is severely decayed," said Hurocy, 40. "Many have teeth that are beyond repair and need to be extracted."
"There's a misconception among parents — 'They're baby teeth, and they don't matter,'" Hurocy said. "Those baby teeth do matter. They hold space for permanent teeth. They allow them to eat. They're tied to overall health."
Access to dental care is a statewide problem, said Karen Dent, director of the Oral Health Network in Jefferson City, a group of 65 health care professionals who provide oral care to medically underserved people throughout the state.
"Our No. 1 goal is increasing access to dental care for Missourians regardless of their ability to pay," Dent said. "We need more providers, we need to increase Medicaid reimbursement rates and we need more federally qualified health centers."
The current Medicaid program is set to expire in June 2008. Many families, such as the Croxtons, lost coverage when changes were made to eligibility requirements in 2005. Under the change, families that could afford to buy private insurance at a cost of up to 9 percent of their annual income could not receive Medicaid. But recommendations drafted by Gov. Matt Blunt's staff may reinstate nearly 15,600 people. The plan, which requires approval by the Legislature, calls for lowering the eligibility threshold for Medicaid coverage.
"There's so much more demand than we can meet now," said Bob Massie, a dentist and CEO of the nonprofit Family Care Health Centers Inc.
Massie said 1,200 of the center's 15,000 patients lost their Medicaid coverage starting in 2005, forcing the organization to replace the lost revenue with grants. Yet demand is so high that two years ago the centers' two clinics began providing dental care on Saturdays, and they no longer put children on a waiting list.
Christina Freeman, who receives Medicaid coverage, says she has taken her daughter Jenna, 11, to the same Family Care clinic for dental care for eight years because it's hard to find other dentists who accept the state program.
"She's had cavities, major toothaches, two root canals," Freeman, 31, of Fenton, said. "It helps, with as bad as her teeth have been."
St Louis County and 81% of Missouri is fluoridated:NYSCOF
By Roberto J. Manzano
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
03/05/2007
Dental Assistant Crystal McFarland, (left) gets ready to work on the teeth of Jenna Freeman,11, as Dr.Harry Scharf a dentist at Family Care Health Centers goes over her chart on last week.
Ten-year-old Justin Croxton had to wait a year before a dentist treated a toothache that hurt whenever he bit into an apple.
His mother, Angela Croxton, said the family of six lived on an annual salary of $40,000 and couldn't afford a private clinic's $200 fee to fill a cavity. Two of her younger sons' doctor visits, allergy and asthma medicines cost about $600 a month. Croxton, 31, is a lactation consultant.
"When I have to weigh one issue against the other, it doesn't make me feel like the parent I should be," Croxton said Thursday. "I shouldn't have to say to Justin, 'Wait for the dental (care) because your brother can't breathe.' Because Justin has been healthier, his concerns have been pushed to the back burner so we can take care of the little ones."
The family, insured through the father's job as a valet manager, lost Medicaid coverage last year. But last week, Justin got his cavity filled at the Carondelet neighborhood Family Care Health Center clinic, which charged $25 for the treatment. The Croxtons, who live in De Soto, often make the hourlong drive to the center because it's one of a handful of clinics that offers affordable dental care. Advertisement
Regular and proper dental care is crucial because an untreated decayed tooth can lead to a costly root canal or a lost tooth.
It meant death for Deamonte Driver, 12, of Prince George's County, Maryland. Deamonte died on Feb. 25 after bacteria from an abscessed tooth spread to his brain. The family, which had no insurance, also had lost Medicaid coverage. Deamonte's mother cited difficulty in locating a dentist who accepted the state-administered health plan.
In Missouri, Medicaid is a $6 billion program that covers about 826,000 low-income residents, 754,000 of whom live in poverty, according to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2005 American Community Survey.
In the St. Louis metro area, almost 11 percent of the population — about 275,000 people — live in poverty. Almost 700,000 Missourians lack health insurance.
Statewide, only 660 of the state's 3,660 licensed dentists accept Medicaid patients, according to the state's department of social services. Locally, a few more than 200 dentists accept Medicaid patients.
Good dental care — for children and adults — prevents worse problems down the road, said Harry R. Scharf, 48, a dentist at the Family Care Health Center clinic in the Forest Park Southeast neighborhood.
"If we can get kids early, maybe they'll have good teeth and won't have so many problems as adults," said Scharf, 48.
Because of inexperience and less developed motor skills, children often are less adept brushing and flossing, said Jeannie Hurocy, a registered dental hygienist at the Carondelet Family Care Health Center.
"We have a lot of kids whose mouths are 'bombed out' — just every tooth in their mouth is severely decayed," said Hurocy, 40. "Many have teeth that are beyond repair and need to be extracted."
"There's a misconception among parents — 'They're baby teeth, and they don't matter,'" Hurocy said. "Those baby teeth do matter. They hold space for permanent teeth. They allow them to eat. They're tied to overall health."
Access to dental care is a statewide problem, said Karen Dent, director of the Oral Health Network in Jefferson City, a group of 65 health care professionals who provide oral care to medically underserved people throughout the state.
"Our No. 1 goal is increasing access to dental care for Missourians regardless of their ability to pay," Dent said. "We need more providers, we need to increase Medicaid reimbursement rates and we need more federally qualified health centers."
The current Medicaid program is set to expire in June 2008. Many families, such as the Croxtons, lost coverage when changes were made to eligibility requirements in 2005. Under the change, families that could afford to buy private insurance at a cost of up to 9 percent of their annual income could not receive Medicaid. But recommendations drafted by Gov. Matt Blunt's staff may reinstate nearly 15,600 people. The plan, which requires approval by the Legislature, calls for lowering the eligibility threshold for Medicaid coverage.
"There's so much more demand than we can meet now," said Bob Massie, a dentist and CEO of the nonprofit Family Care Health Centers Inc.
Massie said 1,200 of the center's 15,000 patients lost their Medicaid coverage starting in 2005, forcing the organization to replace the lost revenue with grants. Yet demand is so high that two years ago the centers' two clinics began providing dental care on Saturdays, and they no longer put children on a waiting list.
Christina Freeman, who receives Medicaid coverage, says she has taken her daughter Jenna, 11, to the same Family Care clinic for dental care for eight years because it's hard to find other dentists who accept the state program.
"She's had cavities, major toothaches, two root canals," Freeman, 31, of Fenton, said. "It helps, with as bad as her teeth have been."
St Louis County and 81% of Missouri is fluoridated:NYSCOF
posted by Bill at
10:03 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home