Michigan has been forced to make many budget cuts and Medicaid dental benefits were just one of them. Now we have a death linked to this cutback and the expense of defending the state’s lack of funding the program in a lawsuit. A developmentally disabled Alpena woman who was covered by Medicaid died last week as a result of a dental infection that was not treated.
On the 590KZO Saturday Morning Show Dr. Steve Kujacznski, medical director of the Borgess Emergency and Trauma Center talked about seeing patients make multiple ER visits (paid for by Medicaid) for the same dental condition. These cases were previously handled far more cost effectively in a dentist office. The bigger issue is emergency rooms are neither staffed nor equipped to handle dental issues.
The legislature had an opportunity to restore funding earlier this fall but Republicans in the Senate rejected the idea. Now there is a death linked to the decision. Another far less significant concern is from a monetary perspective. With just $5 million in state funds, the adult dental Medicaid program secured more than $16 million in federal funds. Not to mention the tragic death, the pain and expense of treating dental issues in an ER -- the state’s economy is denied millions of dollars in economic activity.
