Medicaid adult dental benefits and oral health of low-income older adults.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Older adults are keeping their natural teeth longer, spurring calls for dental coverage under Medicare. Although Medicare dental coverage would benefit all older adults, the poorest among them are already eligible for dental benefits through Medicaid. The authors examine the association between states' Medicaid adult dental benefits and dental care use and tooth loss among low-income older adults.

Methods

Using the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System data from 2014, 2016, and 2018, the authors examined adults 65 years or older. The outcomes examined included annual dental visit and partial and complete tooth loss. Poisson regressions were used to obtain risk ratios after adjusting for covariates.

Results

States' Medicaid adult dental benefits were si

SUBMITTER: Singhal A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8330417 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature