Read about the program, which identifies Medicaid patients 60 and older who need full or partial dentures, in the latest issue of “CATALYST” magazine.
Photo: Mark Brennan, DDS, MS, clinical assistant professor at the University of Maryland School of Dentistry, works on patient Scott Phenicie while student Stephen Brockbank observes. Photo by Matthew D'Agostino
By age 60, Scott Phenicie had lost most of his teeth. He cut food into morsels that he swallowed whole, limiting his menu. The construction worker could only dream of a steak dinner.
At 62, Phenicie’s dream came true. A friend treated him to a T-bone steak after the University of Maryland School of Dentistry (UMSOD) provided dental care, restoring Phenicie’s bite and his smile.
Phenicie received dentures that he otherwise couldn’t afford by participating in UMSOD’s Delta Dental Patient Care Program for Seniors. “I appreciate this. I’ve had a lot of compliments so far,” he said.
The grant-funded program began in August 2023, building upon a recent state law that expanded Medicaid dental benefits to cover adults. That expansion went only so far; dentures for those 21 and older are excluded by the Maryland Healthy Smiles Dental Program.
To help meet needs, UMSOD obtained a $150,000 grant from Delta Dental Community Care Foundation, the charitable arm of a network of dental insurance providers. The resulting program identifies Medicaid patients 60 and older who need full or partial dentures, bills the state plan for covered procedures, and draws upon the grant for the balance.
Dentures are too costly for many low-income Marylanders. For patients of UMSOD clinics, a full set is about $2,000, which is lower than other places. The cost might be twice that in the private sector.
“You have someone who isn’t making that much in their Social Security payment every month. They just don’t have that kind of money,” said Robert Windsor, DDS, FICD, who oversees the program.
Windsor, director of UMSOD’s Clinical Operations Division of General Dentistry, said he expects to share outcomes with the state and make data available for future research.
At the Maryland Department of Health, the director of the Office of Oral Health said the program is important. “Dentures help restore the ability to chew, speak clearly, and smile, which impacts overall health and self-esteem,” said Debony Hughes, DDS. “This program and the impact it is making on the lives of seniors clearly demonstrates the need to consider broadening the scope of Maryland’s Medicaid Adult Dental Benefit to include these services.”
Read more about the dental program in the latest issue of CATALYST magazine.
You can read the Fall 2024 issue of CATALYST magazine, which highlights Maryland Carey Law's Center for Health and Homeland Security and its work with artificial intelligence; School of Pharmacy recent graduate Alena Abraham's podcast dedicated to supporting the blind and visually impaired community; Mary Maldarelli, a fellow in Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine and 2019 School of Medicine graduate using her musical talents to create a therapeutic healing environment; Taofeek K. Owonikoko, MD, PhD, the new executive director of the University of Maryland Marlene and Stewart Greenebaum Comprehensive Cancer Center; and much, much more!