Speech and aesthetic concerns seem to have been important factors affecting the health-related quality of life for children with oral clefts. These factors seem to be more important as children get closer to adolescence (ages 8-12 years) when acceptance by peers becomes more critical.

No abstract

Dental coverage for adults is an elective benefit under Medicaid. As a result of budget constraints, California Medicaid eliminated its comprehensive adult dental coverage in July 2009. We examined the impact of this policy change on emergency department (ED) visits by Medicaid-enrolled adults for dental problems in the period 2006-11. We found that the policy change led to a significant and immediate increase in dental ED use, amounting to more than 1,800 additional dental ED visits per year. Young adults, members of racial/ethnic minority groups, and urban residents were disproportionately affected by the policy change. Average yearly costs associated with dental ED visits increased by 68 percent. The California experience provides evidence that eliminating Medicaid adult dental benefits shifts dental care to costly EDs that do not provide definitive dental care. The population affected by the Medicaid adult dental coverage policy is increasing as many states expand their Medicaid programs under the ACA. Hence, such evidence is critical to inform decisions regarding adult dental coverage for existing Medicaid enrollees and expansion populations.

Dental coverage for adult enrollees is an optional benefit under Medicaid. Thirty-one states and the District of Columbia have expanded eligibility for Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act. Millions of low-income adults have gained health care coverage and, in states offering dental benefits, oral health coverage as well. Using data for 2010 and 2014 from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, we examined the impact of Medicaid adult dental coverage and eligibility expansions on low-income adults' use of dental care. We found that low-income adults in states that provided dental benefits beyond emergency-only coverage were more likely to have had a dental visit in the past year, compared to low-income adults in states without such benefits. Among states that provided dental benefits and expanded their Medicaid program, regression-based estimates suggest that childless adults had a significant increase (1.8 percentage points) in the likelihood of having had a dental visit, while parents had a significant decline (8.1 percentage points). One possible explanation for the disparity is that after expansion, newly enrolled childless adults might have exhausted the limited dental provider capacity that was available to parents before expansion. Additional policy-level efforts may be needed to expand the dental care delivery system's capacity.