The need for dental care among those who cannot afford it becomes shockingly apparent when you witness the thousands of people who sign up for the dental charity care event in Mankato.

Dentists and dental hygienists from the region and all over Minnesota come in for the two day event and treat dental patients — adults and children — for dental care problems that have been neglected for years.

So a push to increase the reimbursement rates for dentists treating those on government assistance programs will not only level the playing field of reimbursements between dentists and other health care providers but also get care for those who need it.

As a recent Free Press in-depth report pointed out, dentists often provide care to those on government programs at a loss, getting just 26 percent of the rate a commercial insurance company would pay. Many dentists simply won’t take patients on the government’s Medicaid or Medical Assistance program. As one local dentist put it, they don’t mind working for free but they shouldn’t lose money on treating the poor.

He’s right.

Sen. Julie Rosen, R-Vernon Center, is pushing to up the dental reimbursement rate in Minnesota, which is dead last compared to other states. Rosen wants to increase the rate so Minnesota can be in the middle of all states. The cost to the state would be an estimated $80 million to $100 million over the next two years. Much of that is making up for budget cuts of the last decade. From 2003 to 2013, the reimbursement rate from government programs for dental went from 47 percent of commercial reimbursement rates to 27 percent.

The expense sounds like a hefty price tag, but it should be balanced against what is turning out to be a state surplus of close to $2 billion for the next two years.

And advocates point out correctly that doing nothing actually costs us more. Hennepin County has estimated a $50 million cost per year of emergency room visits by people with dental problems that could have been prevented had they been able to see a dentist. Many times, these cases are children who have infections and abscesses and very serious dental problems.

For some reason, we seem to have neglected dental care as an important part of Minnesota public health care programs. While we pride ourselves and making health care accessible for all, dental care access falls short.

It’s time we shored up that system and made it fair for dentists willing to help and offering comfort to those suffering from serious dental problems.

 

— Mankato Free Press, March 10