Objectives:

According to the NHIS, the percent of the U.S. population who reported a dental visit during the past year has remained level at about 64% since 1999. We investigated whether this was true for all segments of the population. Of special interest were children from low-income families who were targeted by SCHIP programs during this period of time.

Methods:

Dental visit data were based on non-institutionalized persons two years old or older collected as part of National Health Interview Surveys conducted from 1999 to 2005 by the National Center for Health Statistics. Dental expenditure data were based on estimates provided by CMS.

Results:

The percent of children 5 to 17 who reported a dental visit during the past year increased somewhat from 79% in 1999 to 82% in 2005. However, among those below the FPL, the percent rose from 64% to 72%. Among those 100-199% of the FPL, the percent rose from 67% to 74%. Among children from high income families, the percent with a visit remained level at 93%.

Public funding of dental expenditures grew from $2,515 billion in 1999 to $4,881 billion in 2004, or from 4.4% to 6.0% of total dental expenditures. Total Medicaid SCHIP expansion and SHIP dental expenditures grew from $146 million in 1999 to $517 million in 2004.

Conclusion:

Since 1999 the percent of the U.S. population reporting a dental visit has remained level. However, among low-income children 5 to 17 years of age, the percent with a visit increased while the percent with a visit among high income children did not. The increase reported for low-income children occurred during a period of time when public spending on dental services grew as a percent of total dental expenditures.

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