Care for all must start early
Published 4:10 pm Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Earlier this month, which is National Children’s Dental Health Month, a Yakima woman was convicted of second-degree criminal mistreatment for not seeking timely dental care for her 10-year-old son, who is developmentally disabled.
A doctor compared the pain of the dental abscesses in Kathren Ann Carter’s son to “being shot with a nail gun.” Several of the boy’s adult teeth had to be removed, and a doctor said the condition could have been life-threatening.
Carter’s attorney contended she was unaware of the extent of the problem and that she lacked money for expenses, such as transporting the child to appointments.
On Tuesday, the Pew Center released a study showing that at least one in five U.S. children go without annual dental care and most states lack key policies to ensure access to cost-saving preventive treatments.
Only six states received an “A” grade from the nonprofit policy analysis group. But even children in those states have problems accessing care, the report said.
Pew officials note that Americans will spend $106 billion on dentistry this year. Much of it pays for costly treatments such as fillings and root canals, which have their origins in poor childhood dental care.
Among eight areas that states were graded on:
School-based dental sealant programs. Just 17 states have programs to apply cavity-preventing sealants to children’s molars in at least 25 percent of schools with low-income children.
Fluoridated water. Only 26 states have at least 75 percent of their citizens on community water supplies with adequate fluoride to prevent tooth decay.
Medicaid payments. Many dentists won’t accept Medicaid reimbursement rates set below the actual cost of treatment. Only 25 states pay dentists at least 60.5 percent of retail fees.
Washington was one of nine states to receive a “B” grade, meeting five of eight criteria.
A January Associated Press article, “Hundreds without insurance line up for free health care,” illustrated the point about early care. The story detailed a weekend in Maynardville, Tenn., when a nonprofit group Remote Area Medical, which offers free health care to the uninsured, came to town.
The story opens with Hannah Hurst, a 26-year-old mother of three who has had throbbing jaw pain for years. Her baby teeth decayed fast. So did her permanent teeth; her gums were swollen with abscesses. Her hope was that the dentist would remove all of her teeth. Over two days, he did. Toothless, she thanked God for answering her prayers.
The volunteer dentists extracted 852 teeth and filled 234 others that weekend.
Early dental care for all is essential, medically and morally.
