Eliminating Medicaid dental benefits could lead to more costly treatment for California residents, report finds

California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's (R) proposal to eliminate dental benefits for nearly three million state residents as part of a plan to address the state budget deficit would result in a loss of about $115 million in federal matching funds and lead to more costly medical treatment, according to a report released Monday, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

The report -- commissioned by the Dental Health Foundation and the California Primary Care Association -- analyzed the impact of eliminating most dental benefits for adults under Medi-Cal, the state's Medicaid program. Denti-Cal coverage includes diagnostic and preventive dental treatment, as well as fillings, root canals and tooth extractions. The report found that the cuts "will have ripple effects, not only on the affected individuals and their families and communities, but also on Medi-Cal and the overall health care system."

The report also stated that dropping dental benefits for adult Medi-Cal beneficiaries could translate to fewer children receiving regular dental care because children are more likely to receive dental screenings when their parents receive such services. In addition, the cuts would contribute to emergency department overcrowding. Report co-author Dana Hughes said that Maryland and Massachusetts similarly eliminated dental benefits for low-income residents and then experienced a surge in people seeking care at EDs (Fernandez, San Francisco Chronicle, 5/20).

Documented Immigrants Protest Cuts

In related news, documented immigrants visited state legislators' offices on Monday to protest Schwarzenegger's proposed $86.7 million in cuts to Medi-Cal services for immigrants who have had green cards for less than five years, the Sacramento Bee reports. Under the proposed changes, documented immigrants would be eligible only for the services guaranteed to undocumented immigrants, rather than more expansive preventive care and other services that California currently provides, according to the Bee (Ferriss, Sacramento Bee, 5/20).