Millions of Medi-Cal patients statewide could be on the verge of losing their dental care coverage, warned members of the San Fernando Valley Dental Society (SFVDS). Starting July 1, California is expected to significantly cut the state’s safety net dental program, which could result in a $1 billion loss in funding and reduce provider reimbursement rates by 40% to 80%.
Dramatically reducing reimbursements will leave fewer participating providers, causing a substantial decrease in “access to care and significant harm to our most vulnerable communities,” said Dr. Shukan Kanuga, current president of SFVDS, during a recent virtual town hall meeting regarding the anticipated funding cuts and their expected impact on care.
According to a recent survey of more than 1,500 Medi-Cal dentists, 49% said the planned cuts will force them to leave the program, and 30% said they will accept fewer Medi-Cal patients. Western Dental, a major Medi-Cal Dental provider, plans to shut down 50 offices statewide.
“Medi-Cal Dental serves roughly 15 million Californians, including children, seniors and individuals with disabilities. If these cuts move forward, the impact will be immediate and unsustainable,” added Kanuga. “When benefits were reduced in the past, emergency room [ER] visits for preventable general issues increased, costing more and leading to worse outcomes.”
“Without routine dental, preventative [procedures] vanish; minor decay escalates quickly into severe infection and extreme pain,” agreed Dr. Gib Snow. “An ER visit for a dental crisis costs the state up to 10 times more than a simple preventative visit at a dental office.”
About 7 million adults and over 50% of all children across the state currently have Medi-Cal dental coverage, according to Snow. He noted that cutting funding for the dental program “is a direct cut to the fundamental health care access of half of California’s next generation.”
“Dental [care] is not just a niche, specialized program,” he said. “Dental care is medical care.”
When oral health is neglected, untreated infections can worsen chronic diseases, including cardiovascular conditions, and can disrupt glycemic control for diabetic patients, said Snow. In addition, dental issues can lead to severe complications for pregnant mothers and their infants.
“Cutting the Medi-Cal dental budget to save $1 billion doesn’t actually save the state $1 billion,” he stated. “It simply takes that bill and … drops it squarely onto the hospital and ER budget.”
The proposed state budget reduction would cut $362 million from the general fund for the dental program. However, explained Snow, because of how Medi-Cal is structured, cutting state funding would forfeit an additional $576 million in matching federal funds, totaling nearly $1 billion. This would effectively slash program funding to levels dating back 30-plus years.
Nearly two-thirds of California voters approved the current Medi-Cal Dental funding in 2016 when they passed Prop 56, which greatly improved access to dental care thanks in part to a 34% increase in Medi-Cal dental providers statewide. Now, past strides could be lost, and provider availability could end up worse than it was before Prop 56, said Dr. Nova Aghbashian.
“This cut would undo years of progress … and widen the gap [to obtaining] care, especially in communities that have already struggled in getting access to dental care,” said Aghbashian.
Eric Dowdy, a senior legislative advocate for the California Dental Association (CDA), said millions of low-income families in Southern California alone risk losing coverage for basic dental services.
“This has happened before. California stripped adult dental benefits in 2009,” said Dowdy, who noted that it took 13 years to get those benefits back. “We cannot let that happen again.”
Dowdy and the other town hall speakers said they are urging the public to take action to help save dental program funding for Medi-Cal by contacting their state legislators, sharing their stories about how dental services helped improve their health or their family’s health, and spreading the word via printable flyers or sharing information and graphics on social media.
“We have taken action,” said Kanuga, noting the CDA brought together over 80 organizations – including labor, health care and children’s advocacy groups – to create the Save Our Dental Care coalition, which aims to “protect [dental care] for the millions who rely on this program.”
“[It’s] about staying informed, staying engaged and standing together,” she continued. “Your voice matters, and your involvement [can] truly make a difference.”
For more information, including how to contact California state legislators, go to: www.saveourdentalcare.org.