NYT:Filling (dental) Need in Am.'s Poorest Pockets(silent epidemic + meth)

[DeepModem Mom]

Filling a Need (and a Tooth) in America's Poorest Pockets
By BEN DAITZ

Published: April 12, 2005


....In 2000, Dr. David Satcher, then the surgeon general, issued the first report on oral health in America. Calling dental and oral diseases a "silent epidemic," the report details significant oral health problems in poor people of all ages, members of racial and ethnic minorities, people with disabilities and those living in rural America.

The report emphasized that the major factors exacerbating the condition of Americans' teeth and gums were lack of community fluoridation programs, lack of transportation to see dental providers and low rates of dental insurance coverage.

According to most authorities on oral health, dental care for Americans has not improved since the surgeon general's report, and there are many indications that it is getting worse....

***

"Unfortunately, dentistry does not share the degree of social concern that medicine does - the burden of providing good care for poor people," (Dr. Steve Beetstra, assistant professor of surgery and dental services at the University of New Mexico)
said. "Most dentists see themselves as small businessmen. They're more like mom-and-pop operations."...."Twenty or 30 years ago, the best dentists in town were considered those who could craft the best dentures," (Dr. Steve Wagner) said. "Now it's all cosmetics, at least for people who can afford it: it's creating the whitest teeth, the best veneers, the brightest smile."...

***

Dr. Charles Tatlock, a dentist on the faculty, (who) sees patients at Albuquerque's Health Care for the Homeless Clinic and....Dr. Wagner are conducting research to characterize the effects of methamphetamine use on the teeth and gums. "Meth use is an emerging epidemic," Dr. Wagner said. "It explodes people's teeth. It's like ice crystals forming in the crevices of rock, fracturing the teeth."...


http://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/12/health/12teet.html

[K8-EEE]

1. Gum Disease Contributes To A Lot Of Heart Attacks & Strokes

They need to have a government program where the dentists have some of their school loans reimbursed by working in clinics in underserved communities. Not that anything like that will happen with Smirky in power. But that's what needs to happen!

[DeepModem Mom]

2. Excellent idea! nt

[stevedeshazer]

3. Terrific idea

Win-win.

[coffeenap]

7. DH is a dentist--our retirement plans include relocating to an area

of need--probably near a reservation-and providing services at little or no cost. Bartering accepted. Unfortunately, it will be a while since we are still raising kids.

[Name removed]

8. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[MARALE]

11. Good idea!

Corn Syrup is top on my list.

[JohnnyBoots]

10. "A Dental Northern Exposure" I think they might all ready have

something like that. A rugby buddy of mine had to move to Alaska because his wife, a dentist, was paying off loans through work I think.

[mikelgb]

4. no coverage

I would gladly go to the dentist if my work plan covered dental

[DeepModem Mom]

5. As it should, mikelgb -- thanks for posting, and welcome to DU!

[donsu]

6. pretty soon we will all have 3rd world teeth

medicare does not cover teeth unless you need surgery. the criminal bushgang says 'let them eat mush'.

and medicare only pays for the frame of your glasses, not the lenses. frames do nothing for your eyesight, the lenses do. how assbackwards is that?

[cosmicdot]

13. thank-you for mentioning Medicare not covering dental

if I could draw, I would attempt a political cartoon with something like ...

in the first frame:

'Smile America if you feel strong, resolute and secure' ...

and, in the next frame:

picture folks smiling with missing teeth, and maybe some other symbols of health decline ... perhaps with an 'Ownership Society' banner hanging above them and a 'culture of life' poster in the background ...


I sense there's a huge gap (*what % of our population?) between the dental care haves and have nots ... between those who may benefit from what other posters have mentioned above (pay-off college loan work) ... along with the few who may qualify for Medicaid (and what care is offered may not be ideal: extraction vs. saving the tooth with a cap, for example)...

....... and those who are lucky enough to have dental plans through their employer or who can actually afford to buy stand-alone dental coverage ....... the co-pays are hefty ...


*would the number of people without dental care be same as the number we hear without medical care? @50 million?


dental care is cost prohibitive for most people
been there, done that ... still paying for it

Dear elected officials,

kindly get priorities in order ... stop catering to corporate america, and help us, please



a google found this:
"Over 108 million children and adults lack dental insurance, which is over 2.5 times the number who lack medical insurance."
- Oral Health in America: A Report of the Surgeon General

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=Oral+Health+in+America+Over+108+million+children+and+adults+lack+dental+insurance&btnG=Google+Search

[mantis49]

15. In IL,

Medicaid does not pay for dental care for adults unless there is an infection. That is way too late. Penny wise and pound foolish. Not to mention the systemic infections caused by gingivitis and the heart disease caused by bad teeth/ gums.

Thank goodness I have dental insurance now, but I was diligent about preventive dentist visits even without it.

[SoCalDem]

9. While I feel little sympathy for meth-users' teeth problems,

dental care is out of the reach of most family budgets these days, and more and more medical plans are either elimination dental and vision care, or are over pricing it so much that families just cannot afford to use it until someone has a gruesome toothache..

This is what's wrong with our country. We HAVE the dentists, we have the knowledge, and yet the care is "reserved" for only "certain" people..

[grasswire]

12. that's one good thing about Hillary

She has been known to comment on the lack of dental care available to people of modest and little means.

It IS a shame.

[cosmicdot]

14. "Over 108 million children and adults lack dental insurance ...

... which is over 2.5 times the number who lack medical insurance."

- Oral Health in America: A Report of the Surgeon General

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=Oral+Health+in+America+Over+108+million+children+and+adults+lack+dental+insurance&btnG=Google+Search



but, not a priority of our politicians