Cost Keeps Many Americans From Good Dental Care: Report

WEDNESDAY, July 18 (HealthDay News) — Although most Americans
say their teeth are in relatively good shape, a newly published survey
reveals that many are not getting routine dental checkups, with cost cited
as the most common obstacle.

The findings stem from the responses of more than 17,000 men and women,
aged 18 to 64, across the United States, according to the U.S. Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Health Statistics
report.

Among the results gleaned from the 2008 survey, the researchers found
that roughly 75 percent of participants said their oral health was either
good or very good, while 17 percent and 7 percent, respectively, described
their dental health as fair or poor.

Oral health appeared to differ by the type of insurance people had,
with Medicaid recipients running a five times greater risk for poorer
dental health than those with private coverage. Adults on Medicaid were
two times more likely than other adults to have not visited a
dentist in more than a half-decade (21 percent versus 12 percent).

Race also appeared to play a role, as whites and Asians were more
likely to have good oral health (37 percent) than either Hispanics or
blacks (25 percent and 26 percent, respectively). Education was also cited
as a factor, with college graduates significantly more likely to be in
good dental shape than those with less than a high school diploma.

The poll further revealed that six in 10 adults had paid a visit to the
dentist in the previous year. Among those who did not, cost appeared to be
the largest impediment to getting a checkup, with the expense of a dental
visit named as the main reason for not seeing a dentist in the prior six
months.

On that score, 42 percent of survey participants said that they either
did not have dental insurance and/or they could not afford to get their
teeth treated.

Money issues aside, fear was cited by 10 percent as the primary reason
not to cross a dentist’s threshold.

The CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics published the results
of the survey July 18 in Vital and Health Statistics.

More information

For more on dental visit recommendations, visit the American Dental
Association
.

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