Advisers to the governor said Schweitzer is aware of and concerned about the lack of dentists in rural Montana and has proposed expanding dental care coverage for low-income residents.
Can someone out there tell me how expanding dental care coverage for low-income residents is going to help the situation WHEN THERE ARE NO DENTISTS OUT THERE TO GO TO IN THE FIRST PLACE!!!! How in Holy Bat Teeth is this going to help the dentist problem Gov. Schweitzer? It looks to me like the wrong solution for the wrong problem.
The problem is not that there are problems. The problem is expecting otherwise and thinking that having problems is a problem. Theodore Isaac Rubin
I actually think it isn't a bad idea. Since many low income folks don't have dental coverage, they just don't go to the dentist, and so a dentist dealing with a low population density in most parts of the state is doubly impacted by the fact that most of his potential customers can't afford to see him. If more of those folks had coverage, then that would expand the number of people who would go in for regular checkups and preventative care, and there would be enough business to justify a practice. It would then serve to lower other health care costs that are incurred as a result of a lack of preventive dental care. There are a number of studies that have been done that establish a link between chronic dental problems and other non-dental health problems.
I often agree with your criticisms of our intrepid leader, but I think you missed the mark on this one.
Regardless, I really enjoy your blog. Keep up the good work.
We need a way to entice more dentists to these areas. Insurance for the poor doesn't do this. It might be good to do but it doesn't solve the problem the article was about.
I think I wasn't clear on this in my post. If there were wider dental insurance coverage, then that would expand the market dramatically for services in these areas. Folks who don't have dental insurance don't typically go to the dentist for checkups regularly. I know it's true for me. If few have the insurance then it takes a larger population base to support a dentist. If there are more who have it, a dentist can sustain a practice in a smaller population center.
You are correct that dentists are disappearing in rural MT, and I'm sure the general shortage of dentists is playing a role in that. I am also sure that if market conditions were better in rural MT, more dentists would be willing to sign up.
My wife's cousin is a dentist in Alaska right now, grew up in Butte. He flies a plane around with a dental exam room built into it to serve the isolated villages up there. It's all paid for by the feds and the state. He has spoken about this issue on more than one occasion. He would move back to MT in a heartbeat if he could make it work without being in Billings or another "big" Montana city. I'm sure there are others like him around.
Dr. Downing was the dentist in Hardin for many years. I grew up going to him. He retired maybe 10 years ago or so and I don't think anyone has replaced him. I'm guessing that has a lot to do with proximity to Billings.
There are a lot of factors, but I think the inability to make a local practice work financially in the smaller towns is a really big one, and I see wider coverage as something that will help attract folks. Believe it or not, there are those who would choose to live in Eastern MT if they could make a decent go of it.
Thanks for engaging me on the topic, Sam. I'm an Eastern MT boy far away from home at the moment (Johannesburg South Africa) and missing it.
I know there would be people who would choose to live in Eastern MT if they could make a go of it. I hear from a lot of them here and I know quite a few to. That's a topic for another time though since dental coverage is not why they don't live here. The factors are a lot bigger.