Will Obamacare take bite out of dental coverage?

Will Obamacare take bite out of dental coverage?
Dental health may suffer after law’s rollout, experts say

By Jen Wieczner July 13, 2013,
The Affordable Care Act has no teeth. That is not to say enforcement won’t be strict—by all accounts, it will. No, the law literally has no teeth. Dental coverage was all but ignored in the sweeping health-care overhaul. So while more Americans will likely gain access to medical care when the law goes into effect next year, the number that can afford a visit to the dentist for a filling, root canal or checkup may actually decrease, industry officials say.


The health reform law requires consumers to buy a health plan that covers everything from seeing a psychologist to the full cost of breast pumps—but there are no such mandates for dental coverage, or requirements that insurers pay for the care of most Americans’ pearly whites.

The law does include some provisions for children’s dental services as an essential health benefit, stipulating coverage of medically necessary orthodontia. But it includes no additional coverage for adults, according to American Dental Association president Robert Faiella. While employers who provide health benefits often pay a portion of the costs of dental coverage, fewer of them contribute to dental insurance even when it is offered to employees.

“The ACA really falls short on adult coverage in dentistry,” says Faiella. “The dental side is not really addressed.”

In fact, adult dental coverage in general has suffered in the past decade, while more children have received benefits, according to the ADA. The percentage of adults going to the dentist has also dropped, from 41% in 2003 to 37% in 2010. Adults’ declining dental health has also led to a disturbing trend, Faiella says: The number of emergency room visits for dental problems nearly doubled to more than 2 million between 2000 and 2010, according to ADA research.

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http://www.marketwatch.com/story/will-obamacare-take-bite-out-of-dental-coverage-2013-07-12