Pew Says There Are Too Few Dentists in Southern US
Following the results of the Pew report, southern US states are suffering from a lack of dentists.
Around 20.6% of South Carolina’s population are without a dentist but this isn’t even the worst case. Unfortunately Mississippi ranked number one with over 36% of its population without a dentist with Louisiana and Alabama tying second at 24%.
To make matters even worse, around 42% of Louisiana’s dentists are reaching retirement ages, which could lessen the supply, suggests the report.
According to the report, the shortage is due to a government cut in the Medicaid program, which reimburses rates paid directly to dentists. Pew states that Louisiana in particular will suffer from 3% cuts, which will further minimise access to dental care in rural areas especially.
The Pew study also suggests that without early access to dental care, many are likely to face serious dental conditions that will require emergency treatment, in the long run.
However, some good news to come out of this is that children are receiving more care in the area, thanks to Medicaid. Around 30% of children received Medicaid dental care in the area during 2007-8 in comparison with 42% received treatment 4 years on.
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