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Legislative Issues
COHAT legislative update April 3 2011 (pdf)Primary messages
Good oral health is essential to a child's healthy growth and development.
Healthy teeth and gums are essential to a child’s overall growth and development. Good oral health plays a critical role in learning readiness, speech and language formation, self-confidence and future physical wellness, creating a healthy foundation for school and life.
Tooth decay remains a problem for many Ohio children.
While the oral health of children overall has shown improvement, significant disparities remain. Dental care is the number one unmet health care need for Ohio children. Nearly one in five Ohio third graders have untreated cavities; the rates for low income children and those who live in Appalachia are more than 25 percent. Poor dental habits and diet, the lack of preventive treatments and limited access to affordable dental care contribute to the problem.
Early prevention programs are successful in reducing tooth decay.
Early prevention programs that stress intensive education, screening and intervention efforts are highly effective. Screening and routine preventive treatments like sealants and fluoride varnish can be easily administered in settings where children are found – like schools or primary medical care settings. Effective programs instruct families and caregivers about diet, dental care and tooth brushing, and motivate parents to make oral health a priority despite personal fears about seeing a dentist. These programs improve oral health at an opportune time – when they can have the most impact.
Small investments prevent more costly problems later.
Health care research links poor oral health to serious diseases like diabetes, stroke and cardiovascular disease in adults. Sealant programs are affordable and can reduce tooth decay by as much as 50 percent, and every $1 invested in water fluoridation saves $38 in dental treatments. These prevention programs deliver a tremendous return on investment.
Secondary messages
Good oral health starts with babies, research reports.
Good dental habits begin even before the first baby teeth come in. Most parents and caregivers don’t realize that dental caries (also known as tooth decay or a cavity) is a chronic infectious disease caused by bacteria that are transferred to the baby from the parent or caregiver. If present in the mouth in the first few years of a child’s life, these bacteria can damage baby teeth. If they remain in the mouth, they can damage permanent teeth as well.
Just like toddlers and young children have a regular pediatrician or family doctor, they should also have a dentist they see regularly.
Almost 340,000 Ohio children under the age of 18 have never seen a dentist, according to the Ohio Department of Health. All children should have a dental home, a dentist that oversees their regular care regardless of income or where they live. Children should see a dentist as soon as the first tooth erupts, or at least by their first birthday, in order to establish healthy habits, reduce the risk of infection and take advantage of prevention programs that will improve their oral health.
Tooth decay hurts children from low-income families at much higher rates.
Children who have no insurance or are enrolled in Medicaid are less likely to receive dental care. Only 12 percent of children covered by Medicaid ages 0-2 and 42 percent ages 3-18 saw a dentist in 2008. Seventy-five percent of untreated cavities in permanent teeth are found in a quarter of the children. Children living in low-income households and those who are black or live in Appalachia are most likely to have untreated cavities and toothaches. Even when dental problems reach a serious level, these children often must wait a month or longer to see a dentist. These delays can result in permanent damage and more serious, invasive treatment.
There is a group in Ohio working to improve children's oral health.
The Children’s Oral Health Action Team (COHAT) is a team of nearly 30 organizations from education, health care, dental and advocacy backgrounds who believe that children can and should have healthier teeth and gums. These advocates know the time to invest is when children are young before these problems reach a crisis level. This action team will work on creating more visible, comprehensive education to families, health care professionals, educators and advocates; increasing emphasis on preventive dental care, especially for low-income children; and strengthening Medicaid so more children insured by that program can access dental care.