Increase HUSKY Dental Rates
Op-Edit
March 23, 2007
The Post has recently run a series of
articles – authored by writer Marian Gail
Brown – addressing the plight of children in
CT who lack access to oral health care. Ms.
Brown has been doing a fine job of
documenting many of the dismaying facts that
lead kids in our state to emergency rooms and
to belated visits to dentists, resulting in
significant (and expensive) dental
procedures, including loss of both primary
and secondary teeth.
The 2007 CT State Legislature has a golden
opportunity to address this issue, through
passage of House Bill 7069, “An Act
Concerning Access to Oral Health Care.” This
bill provides for raising dental
reimbursement rates for services provided
under the state’s HUSKY program to the 70th
percentile (equating to rates charged by 70%
of the dentists in the state). Current HUSKY
dental reimbursement rates – which have not
been increased since 1993 – are at the 10th
percentile, meaning they are at a level
acceptable to only 10% of the dentists in the
state. Private dentists who accept current
HUSKY reimbursement lose money for each HUSKY
patient they see.
Our agency facilitates a dental collaborative
called ORBIT (Oral Health-Bridgeport
Initiative). Funded to a large degree by a
grant from the CT Health Foundation, ORBIT’s
goal is to increase the percentage of
HUSKY-enrolled kids in the
Bridgeport/Stratford area who receive dental
services. Currently only 30% of HUSKY
enrollees obtain dental care, compared to 60%
of kids with private dental insurance – due
primarily to the lack of dentists who
contract with the state as HUSKY providers.
A survey conducted by the CT State Dental
Association found that more than 350 dentists
not currently contracted with the HUSKY
program would contract if reimbursement rates
were raised to the 70th percentile. This
number is credible, because other states
which have raised their reimbursement rates
have seen this kind of dramatic increase in
contracted dentists.
We recently had the incredibly gratifying
experience of partnering with private
dentists to provide free care to needy
children in our area, as part of the American
Dental Association’s Give Kids A Smile Day.
In all, 18 local dentists (members of the
Bridgeport Dental Society) provided free
exams and treatment to 85 children, many of
whom will receive ongoing free care from
these same providers. Some of these children
have no dental insurance, but others are
HUSKY enrollees simply unable to obtain care
as quickly as they need it, because of the
lack of dentists accepting HUSKY
reimbursement. Clearly, dentists want to
help, but the current reimbursement rates get
in the way.
Imagine your own kids suffering oral
infections, missing school, losing sleep and
potentially teeth, because you couldn't find
a dentist able to see them when they needed
dental services. We urge you to call and/or
write to your state legislators in Hartford,
and in turn urge them to support increasing
HUSKY dental reimbursement rates to the 70th
percentile, as outlined in HB 7069.
Joan N. Lane, Director of Programs
Meredith C. Ferraro, Executive Director
Southwestern Area Health Education Center (AHEC)
Send us your news and stories on access to oral
health care issues for future
Updates.
Send them, in electronic to the
e-mail address below. One or two digital
pictures
and/or graphics
are also good.
About Connecticut Oral Health Initiative
The Connecticut Oral Health Initiative, or COHI for
short, is a state-wide collaborative of dental
professionals, business and community leaders. Our
Mission is Oral Health Care for All. We work to
persuade, educate and inform decision makers and the
general public about the important issues involving
oral health. We started in 1992 as a project of the
Connecticut State Dental Association and
incorporated as a separate 501(c)(3) non-profit
corporation in 2003. We are supported by your
tax-deductible contribution and grants from
progressive foundations and businesses.
|
Connecticut Oral Health Initiative
Marty Milkovic
Executive Director
phone:
860-246-COHI (2644)
|
|
