Idaho eliminated nonemergency dental coverage for more than 42,000 poor or disabled citizens as part of budget cuts last week, according to a news story in the Spokesman-Review.
This cut in Medicaid benefits will save the state $1.7 million in annual savings, but some experts are questioning the move.
"Some of this stuff, if you don't take care of it at a certain level, then it gets worse, so it can cost a lot more," Jack Fullwiler, DDS, president of the Idaho State Dental Association, told the paper.
Idaho cut a total of $34 million from its Medicaid program this year.
Cutting dental coverage for adults on Medicaid will put more stress on the few federally qualified clinics in Idaho that charge fees on a sliding scale, Dr. Fullwiler told the Spokesman-Review.
