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Dental Health and Access to Dental Care
Oral health is an integral part of general health and well-being. Good oral health and freedom from oral pain and infection substantially contribute to quality of life and self-esteem. Poor oral health, on the other hand, is an obstacle to good nutrition, can severely affect people’s ability to carry out the normal activities of daily life. ... The oral health of Americans has improved greatly over the past 50 years, but there are areas where severe oral health problems remain. Experts estimate that as many as 42 million Americans have no insurance coverage for dental care, and low-income families that have some type of health insurance still find it difficult to obtain quality health care (Summary…). Many people in America without insurance do not see dentist on a regular basis and have poor oral health which can lead to poor overall health (A Solution…). ... People with severe dental disease, such as untreated abscesses, can wind up with a deformed jaw or chronic halitosis (bad breath). ...
Community health centers (CHCs) are one of the sources of health care for low-income consumers. CHCs provide health care to low-income families, particularly the
uninsured. They are typically private, nonprofit, consumer-directed health care
corporation that provides comprehensive primary and preventative care to medically underserved people (Program…). I work as a Dental Assistant for one of these Community Health Dental Clinics in Everett. ... I got the phone book and went through about 20-30 dental offices, and no one wanted to take Medicaid. ... Hundreds of other people such as seniors, students, unemployed, homeless and other come to our clinics in severe pain, dangerously swollen in their face and neck seeking urgent emergency care. They live with infection and pain that could have been easily avoided with proper dental care. ... ” or “Do you provide emergency dental care for no-income people? ...
To change this situation, US health departments (such as American Dental Association, the U. ... Public Health Service, the American Medical Association and the World Health Organization), instead of calling for more investment in Medicaid, all too frequently seek the cheap and easy “fix” – water fluoridation (Fluoridation Facts). ... This is, of course, probably one of the attractions of water fluoridation – no difficult budget decisions – simply add an inexpensive chemical (inexpensive because it’s a hazardous industrial waste product) to the water, and presto – the poor can enjoy the dental care they wouldn’t otherwise receive. In a sense, water fluoridation has become a substitute for dental insurance. Perhaps this is one of the reasons why Western Europe hasn’t felt as compelled as the US to fluoridate their water – because most of these nations have universal health insurance (Improving…). ... Of course, just because fluoridation is cheaper and easier for government, doesn’t necessarily mean that it is an effective substitute for dental insurance. Indeed, there would be a good discussion to be had, were fluoridation a safe and effective means of reducing dental decay in the poor. ... Well, for one thing, people in the United States without dental insurance don’t go to the dentist on a regular basis. Another way of putting
it is that the people who regularly go to the dentist have dental insurance. ... They have really done a good job of convincing the working people that
dental benefits are very important. The large employers of our country have been convinced by the insurance industry that dental benefits are important to a well balanced health care plan for their employees. They have been told that unless they have a dental plan in their health care package that they won’t be able to attract the better qualified employees. ... The patients that can afford to pay the entire dental fee and wait to have their insurance company reimburse them are few and far between. ... More patients are coming into our offices because they have dental benefits. People that don’t have dental coverage (very often low-income), don’t come to the dentist on a regular basis.
Approximate Word count = 3304
Approximate Pages = 13.2
(250 words per page double spaced)
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