USA - Schumer backs bill to expand child dental care
Schumer backs bill to expand child dental care
By Meghan E. Murphy
Times Herald-Record
May 08, 2008
ALBANY — U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer yesterday threw his support behind a bill aimed at boosting dental care for children.
Stressing the importance of preventive dentistry to overall health, Schumer said upstate New York faces challenges in lack of insurance among children and access to dentists.
Schumer, D-N.Y., said there are about 115,000 children in the Hudson Valley who do not have health insurance and there is only one dentist for every 1,700 people in upstate New York.
The Deamonte Driver Dental Care Access Improvement Act of 2008 would fund public education on available government health insurance programs, offer a tax credit to dentists who accept Medicaid and uninsured patients and provide grants to community health centers and dental education programs at colleges.
Local officials say the need for dental care for Medicaid-insured and uninsured children in and around Newburgh is great.
Last month, the Newburgh-based Small Smiles Dentistry, which specialized in providing care to those patients, closed its doors after only six months in business. Further, many dental offices won't accept Medicaid patients because the reimbursement is a fraction of their normal charge.
mmurphy@th-record.com
Newburgh was the first US city to add fluoride chemicals into the drinking water and then test for health effects. It's still held up as a beacon of fluoridation's safety and effectiveness when the evidence, such as this news story, shows otherwise. NYSCOF
By Meghan E. Murphy
Times Herald-Record
May 08, 2008
ALBANY — U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer yesterday threw his support behind a bill aimed at boosting dental care for children.
Stressing the importance of preventive dentistry to overall health, Schumer said upstate New York faces challenges in lack of insurance among children and access to dentists.
Schumer, D-N.Y., said there are about 115,000 children in the Hudson Valley who do not have health insurance and there is only one dentist for every 1,700 people in upstate New York.
The Deamonte Driver Dental Care Access Improvement Act of 2008 would fund public education on available government health insurance programs, offer a tax credit to dentists who accept Medicaid and uninsured patients and provide grants to community health centers and dental education programs at colleges.
Local officials say the need for dental care for Medicaid-insured and uninsured children in and around Newburgh is great.
Last month, the Newburgh-based Small Smiles Dentistry, which specialized in providing care to those patients, closed its doors after only six months in business. Further, many dental offices won't accept Medicaid patients because the reimbursement is a fraction of their normal charge.
mmurphy@th-record.com
Newburgh was the first US city to add fluoride chemicals into the drinking water and then test for health effects. It's still held up as a beacon of fluoridation's safety and effectiveness when the evidence, such as this news story, shows otherwise. NYSCOF
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