Work For Oral Health Continues

The Center for Medicare Advocacy is pleased to continue our longstanding partnership with the CareQuest Institute for Oral Health, formally DentaQuest Partnership for Oral Health Advancement, to advance our common goal of adding a comprehensive oral health benefit to Medicare, as part of our commitment to improving oral health for older people and people with disabilities.

The Center’s ongoing work will continue to focus on the push for comprehensive Medicare coverage for oral health care, including preventive services, while continuing work on the urgent need for medically essential oral health coverage. We will continue partnering with CareQuest Institute for Oral Health, and other medical and advocacy partners to move this issue forward.

Research demonstrates that oral health disparities exist for many racial and ethnic groups, by socioeconomic status, gender, age and geographic location. This underscores the need to approach oral health disparities as a component of social justice. CareQuest supports an approach to policy changes in oral health that respond to the social determinants of health. CareQuest recognizes that, in order to make strides in health equity, it is essential to address the disparities that are at the root of the problem. This is aligned with how the Center approaches policy solutions, so we are eager to continue this crucial work.

• More information on CareQuest Institute for Oral Health is available at: https://www.carequest.org/