Many NJ dentists reluctant to treat low-income children

As many as 85 percent of children in New Jersey have preventive dental care.  But the Annie E. Casey Foundation, a Maryland-based foundation focused on improving the well-being of American children, finds lack of access for low-income families.

Dr. Nicole McGrath, president and CEO of the Kindersmile Foundation in Bloomfield, says only about 9 percent of licensed dentists in New Jersey are providers for Medicaid and Managed Care, the state insurance that enables them to treat low-income children.

But McGrath says the reimbursement rate is extremely low, so a lot of dentists are hesitant to become Medicaid subscribers.

But she says there are some state programs to help these children. There are federally qualified healthcare centers that offer care for low-income children. The Kindersmile Foundation is a nonprofit that provides oral care access to low-income, uninsured kids as well as uninsured perinatal mothers. She says the foundation has treated more than 15,000 children and donated $5 million in free dental services.

Advocates say boosting funding for the state's Medicaid and Managed Care programs would attract more dentists into becoming providers.

"We're working very, very hard to put New Jersey back on the map in terms of access to oral care and I believe in the next couple of years with this governor, we'll definitely get there," says McGrath.

In the meantime, she says parents should beef up their children's oral hygiene. They should make sure that the kids are brushing twice a day, flossing daily and making sure that the foods they eat are not high in sugars.

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