I have two teeth that are broken off at the gum line and to fix them would cost $8,000. I’m 74 years old, and the amount of use I’d get out of this isn’t enough to make up for paying that much out of pocket. Most of us can’t afford to hand out that much money, particularly senior citizens on fixed incomes.
Families living near the poverty line, or even middle-class families, can’t pay this without going into debt. The cost of dental care in Massachusetts is overwhelming and many of us are left without care because we simply cannot afford it.
There is a far greater need for dental care in our state than there are dentists who can fulfill it.
A bill, S. 2076, was introduced into the Legislature to license new dental providers – dental hygiene practitioners. DHPs are mid-level between a dental hygienist and a dentist. They can perform cleanings, fillings, sealant work and other basic dental procedures under the provision of a dentist at a lower cost. We need dental hygiene practitioners here now. They will be a great benefit to those thousands of children on MassHealth and the seniors in care facilities who received no dental care at all last year.
Many people don’t realize how important having healthy teeth is to our well-being. I do. Starting with what we eat, our teeth affect our health. Have you ever taken a look at a senior center or in an area where people have had most of their teeth extracted?
They can’t eat normally; they don’t get proper nutrition, so their diet and health suffers. Dental hygiene practitioners can help prevent this. They have worked well in other states.
We owe it to everyone in Massachusetts to get them working here as well by passing S.2076.
EDWARD HALL
Williamsburg