Description/Abstract
Older adult Medicare recipients face high out-of-pocket dental expenses due to a lack of appropriate dental care coverage. Older adults with lower socioeconomic status tend to have worse oral health, less dental insurance coverage, greater difficulties finding a dentist, and low-quality care. This brief details the experiences socioeconomically disadvantaged older adults face in obtaining appropriate and affordable dental care and calls on Congress to include preventative and restorative dental care as part of the federal funding agenda.
Document Type
Research Brief
Keywords
Dental Care, Older Adults, Medicare, Health Policy
Disciplines
Dental Public Health and Education | Gerontology | Health Policy | Public Policy | Sociology
Date
11-23-2021
For More Information
Language
English
Acknowledgements
This work was supported in part by Grant #1908-17412 from the Russell Sage Foundation. Any opinions expressed are those of the principal investigator(s) alone and should not be construed as representing the opinions of the Foundation. Our thanks to Claire Pendergrast, Sarah Reilly, Winston Scott, and Rebecca Wang for assistance with conducting interviews. Our thanks to Nicole Replogle, Shannon Monnat, and Lerner Center staff editorial assistance.
Funder(s)
Russell Sage Foundation
Funding ID
#1908-17412
Recommended Citation
Harrington Meyer, Madonna; Reilly, Sarah; and Finan, Julia, "The U.S. Should Expand Access to Dental Care for Older Adults" (2021). Population Health Research Brief Series. 161.
https://surface.syr.edu/lerner/161
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Included in
Dental Public Health and Education Commons, Gerontology Commons, Health Policy Commons, Public Policy Commons
