Study knocks Bush dental plan

[Judi Lynn]

Posted on Sun, Jul. 30, 2006

Study knocks Bush dental plan
A new study reports that a pilot project in Miami-Dade to privatize the dental care of poor children resulted in a huge drop in treatment.
BY JOHN DORSCHNER
[e-mail]

The number of poor kids getting dental care plummeted 40 percent in the first year of a Medicaid pilot project in Miami-Dade, according to a study released this month by the University of Florida.

The program was intended to improve about 200,000 children's access to dental care, reduce fraud and contain costs by moving them from standard fee-for-service to a health maintenance organization. The HMO is run by a Coral Gables firm, Atlantic Dental, and dentists are paid about $4.25 a month per child for all basic treatment.

But in its first year, only 22 percent of eligible Medicaid kids made a trip to the dentist, the report said, compared to 37 percent under the old fee-for-service program. The report also found fewer dentists took part in the new program, their dissatisfaction was high and the services they provided appeared to be worth less than what the state paid them.

The study, commissioned by the state, is the first to track the results of a pilot program announced with great fanfare in 2004 as part of Gov. Jeb Bush's campaign to contain ever-soaring Medicaid costs by turning to the private sector to manage care. If successful, officials planned to expand it statewide.
(snip/...)

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/15159099.htm

[Monkeyman]

1. Two Drunks walking

[NanceGreggs]

2. If it says "BUSH" on the label ...

... you know it's not going to accomplish anything worthwhile!

[IntravenousDemilo]

3. I'm just surprised it doesn't involve a doorknob and a piece of string.n/m

[Tandalayo_Scheisskopf]

4. Or...

A pair of pliers, a cold chisel and a hand sledge, a Dremel powertool and a can of Bondo.

Of course, they could sell chances to their biggest campaign contributors, chances that would allow them to be Dentists for a day. I am sure the cries of the poor would not disturb them in the least. They might find those cries rather bracing. Good sport and all that.

Or, they could just let the Barbers do dentistry again, for the poor.

[IntravenousDemilo]

6. And a can of Colt 45 for anaesthetic.

But what with the size of the deficit, I'm not sure if the government could afford all that equipment.

[tocqueville]

5. maybe they meant that somebody wabnted to knock his teeth out nt

[Mika]

7. My goodness. $4.25 a month per child?

Better ship in some H1B visa dentists to kill off the US dental profession.

Its already happening to the US dental lab industry (what's left of it that hasn't been outsourced to China yet).

:mad:

--

America is sinking and too few are helping to bail out the water rushing in. :(

[Quantess]

11. Maybe WalMart can branch out into dentistry.

Oh, they wouldn't be real dentists, but they would get on the job training. Cashiers could get a whole dollar raise by getting promoted to the dental department!

[jody]

8. $4.25/month is ridiculous. No competent dentist could/would do that except

as pure charity. The HMO is probably making a big profit for administering the program.

[savemefromdumbya]

9. The gov has enough money to fix everyone's teeth!

[Lindacooks]

10. Are we really sure they have the same father?

Everything about them is totally different - I would never say they are related.

Of course, they're both stupid and cruel, so you KNOW they were raised in the same family.

[krkaufman]

12. We're a far cry from the days of relative competence and leadership ...

... of the Kennedy brothers.