New survey finds overwhelming majority of US voters support Medicare dental coverage
A new poll by CareQuest Institute and the Oral Health Progress and Equity Network (OPEN) reveals that, regardless of political orientation, 92% of voters nationwide are in favor of adding dental coverage to Medicare.1
Nine out of 10 voters also want expanded coverage to include dental services for veterans, and 74% support adding dental benefits for adults to Medicaid, both state-wide and federally. Overall, dental care ranked the highest on the list of services voters hope to see added to Medicaid.1
Melissa Burroughs, director of public policy at CareQuest Institute, believes these results show that people understand how critical oral health is to overall health.
"No one in this country should have to choose between getting the care they need and putting food on the table," she said. "As candidates consider their health care platforms this year, the informed ones will make Medicare dental coverage a top priority."1
Why Medicare is essential
However, Medicare does not typically include dental benefits, which means half of all Medicare enrollees currently lack dental coverage.2 To put this into perspective, that's almost 24 million older Americans without access to an essential part of health care. Out-of-pocket costs are not usually cheap, which is perhaps why these 24 million Americans haven't visited a dentist in the past year.2
This is a problem because inadequate oral care can exacerbate chronic medical conditions such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease and delay critical diagnoses. Failure to address preventable complications can result in expensive emergency room visits, which costs patients even more money.2
Policymakers may need to reevaluate our country's medical care given the increased interest in dental benefits. They must weigh various factors to determine the future of Medicare, including costs, the scope of covered benefits, and how different types of dental coverage can affect prices and premiums.2
References
1. Dental coverage national voter polling results. CareQuest. July 15, 2024. https://www.carequest.org/resource-library/dental-coverage-national-voter-polling-results
2. Freed M, Ochieng N, Sroczynski N, Damico A, Amin K. Medicare and dental coverage: a closer look. KFF. July 28, 2021. https://www.kff.org/medicare/issue-brief/medicare-and-dental-coverage-a-closer-look/
