The official end of the COVID-19 public health emergency has kicked off a nationwide “unwinding” of coverage that had previously been renewing automatically. This includes pandemic-era Medicaid dental coverage which had been used by almost 14 million Americans, including over 2.3 million people in my native California.
Good oral health is one of the surprise factors in overall human health. Taking care of your teeth reduces inflammation, decay, and gum disease, which themselves are linked to heart, organ, and pregnancy issues. That’s partially why in 2022 California lawmakers invested tens of millions of dollars into new dental offices which will serve at-risk populations.
But lawmakers can only do so much, which is why California’s Health and Human Services Agency is one of many state health agencies scrambling to provide a safety net for millions of residents facing losing health insurance.
[I understand the dilemma, but emergency spending is just that — something to bridge gaps in an emergency. We are adding more than a trillion dollars a year in debt even without the emergency spending now, so there’s no extra money floating around for another entitlement program. — Ed]
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