Taking on the Dental Crisis: A Q&A With Bernie Sanders

[limpyhobbler]

A recent interview with Sen. Sanders in The Nation.

http://www.thenation.com/print/article/166466/taking-dental-crisis-qa-bernie-sanders

...But with 47 million people living in areas where it’s still difficult to access dental care, 17 million low-income children not seeing a dentist every year and one-fourth of US adults over age 65 missing all of their teeth, Sanders says there is still a long way to go to address this crisis.

I talked to the senator about this week’s hearing as well as what has driven him to focus on an issue that not many people want to talk about. This is what he had to say:

Greg Kaufmann: Dental disease has been called “the silent epidemic [3]” or “the hidden healthcare crisis [4].” Is that how you would characterize it?

Senator Bernie Sanders: Absolutely. We have a real crisis both in terms of access to affordable dental care—and not only for lower-income Americans but for many in the middle-class as well—and the consequences of a lack of treatment.

[hedgehog]

1. There is something wrong when so many can't afford to see a dentist

for basic care, yet so many dentists are expanding their practices to provide tooth whitening!