July 7, 2022
The Honorable Nancy Pelosi
Speaker
U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, DC 20515

The Honorable Chuck Schumer
Majority Leader
U.S. Senate
Washington, DC 20510

The Honorable Kevin McCarthy
Minority Leader
U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, DC 20515

The Honorable Mitch McConnell
Minority Leader
U.S. Senate
Washington, DC 20510

Dear Speaker Pelosi, Leader Schumer, Leader McCarthy and Leader McConnell:
On behalf of our collective organizations, we would like to urge your support ofH.R.4439, the Medicaid Dental Benefit Act and S. 3166, the Medicaid Dental Benefits
Act of 2021. This legislation would make comprehensive dental care a requiredcomponent of Medicaid coverage for adults in every state.
As we emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic, we must not forget the important lessons
COVID-19 has taught us about our health system. The pandemic has shone a spotlighton the inadequacies within our social safety net programs, most starkly in oral healthcare. During the pandemic, nearly half of US adults reported delaying dental care. And
unfortunately, this problem has only grown due to the large increases in Medicaid
enrollment since the start of the pandemic. From February 2020 to May 2021, adultenrollment increased by nearly 23 percent.
Many adults who rely on Medicaid benefits find that there is little, if any, coverage fordental care. A long-standing lack of focus on adult oral health care from federal andstate governments has created a patchwork of dental coverage by state Medicaid
programs. American adults on Medicaid find options for dental care vary based on theirstate. Less than half of the states provide “extensive” dental coverage for adults in their
Medicaid programs. The others offer limited benefits, emergency-only coverage, ornothing at all for adults. Without a federal requirement, and given the competing
priorities for state budgets, the optional adult dental benefit is often not provided bystates.
This lack of state coverage is particularly problematic because the millions of adults who
rely on Medicaid are the least likely to access dental care (including basic preventiveservices), face the biggest cost barriers to dental care, and are more likely than theirhigher income counterparts to experience dental pain, report poor mouth health, andfind their lives to be less satisfying due to their poor oral health.
Ensuring that states provide comprehensive dental services to adult Medicaid
beneficiaries is a sound economic investment. Recently, new research from the ADA’s
Health Policy Institute estimated what it would cost to secure dental coverage for themillions of adults who rely on Medicaid for their health care. The study shows thatacross the 28 states that currently do not provide comprehensive dental coverage, thenet cost of providing extensive adult dental benefits is $836 million per year. Thisincludes an estimated $1.1 billion per year in dental care costs and $273 million peryear in medical care savings. As Medicaid oral health coverage opens the door to
regular care in more appropriate and cost-effective settings, fewer people would turn toemergency departments to relieve dental pain. This change could save our healthsystem $2.7 billion annually. Also, poor oral health creates social and economic barriers
that prevent many low-income adults from economic advancement. Eliminating thesebarriers would generate additional savings and empower people to pursue better jobs
and careers. (Download the report with detailed state by-state analysis “Making theCase for Dental Coverage for Adults in All State Medicaid Programs”.)
We would appreciate your support for this legislation moving forward and will continue
working with you and your staff to improve the oral health of Americans. Please contact
Chris Tampio at tampioc@ada.org or 202-789-5178 to facilitate further discussion.
Sincerely,
American Dental Association
Academy of General Dentistry
American Association for Dental, Oral, and Craniofacial Research
American Association of Endodontists
American Academy of Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology
American Academy of Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology
American Academy of Periodontology
American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry
American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons
American Association of Orthodontists
American Student Dental Association
Association of Dental Support Organizations
Community Catalyst
Dental Trade Alliance
Diverse Dental Society
Hispanic Dental Association
National Dental Association