Texas dentists' attitudes toward the dental Medicaid program

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to report the attitudes of Texas dentists toward the Dental Medicaid program. Methods: A self-administered survey was mailed to all pediatric dentists and a random sample of general dentists. Results: Surveys from 347 (69%) of 500 dentists 071 of 295 general dentists [58%] and 169 of 205 pediatric dentists [82%]) were returned. 57% of pediatric dentists and 29% of general dentists (P<.0001) treated at least 1 Medicaid patient in the post year. The major areas of dissatisfaction were: (1) broken appointments; (2) low reimbursement levels, and (3) patient noncompliance. This mirrors results from studies in Iowa, Louisiana, Ohio, Washington, and California. Both pediatric and general practitioners identified the following barriers to care for the Medicaid population: (1) low dental IQ; (2) few providers; and (3) no transportation. Conclusions: The major areas of dissatisfaction include both programmatic and patient related factors. Attributes of the system (eg, lower reimbursement levels) are m ore modifiable than attributes of the patient population (eg, patient noncompliance and low dental IQ). Underfunding of dental Medicaid is endemic to all states studied in the literature. Providers, legislators, and government programs should target the programmatic problems with future efforts and funding.