ODA SURVEY SHOWS POSITIVE IMPACT OF MEDICAID REIMBURSEMENT INCREASES
As many of you know, starting in January of 2024, dental Medicaid reimbursements in Ohio increased on average by 93% per procedure. This across-the-board increase was the result of years of advocacy by the ODA and its member dentists urging policymakers to address the deficiencies in the dental Medicaid program.
These reimbursement increases are having a significant impact on the dental Medicaid program – in terms of increasing the number of dentists treating Medicaid-covered patients and the number of Medicaid patients that existing Medicaid providers are treating.
Earlier this spring, the ODA conducted a survey of all its members – regardless of whether they are Medicaid providers or not.
The results are encouraging. Thirty-one percent of respondents reported that they are actively treating Medicaid-covered patients. This is an increase over the results of a broad membership survey that was taken in 2023 where 18% of ODA members reported treating Medicaid-covered patients.
Moreover, the recent Medicaid survey reveals that:
- Eight percent of respondents who are currently treating Medicaid-covered patients report that they were not Medicaid providers prior to the reimbursement increases.
- Thirty-two percent of existing Medicaid dentists report that they are treating more Medicaid covered patients due to the reimbursement increases and on average they are treating 55 new Medicaid patients in a typical month.
- Eleven percent of practice owners that are currently treating Medicaid-covered patients report that the Medicaid reimbursement increases allowed them to hire an associate.
- Twenty-two percent of practices that actively treat Medicaid-covered patients report that the Medicaid reimbursement increases allowed them to add equipment or space to expand treatment capacity.
- Ten percent of dentists who actively treat Medicaid-covered patients reported that the Medicaid reimbursement increases enabled them to see more patients who are disabled or elderly.
This positive momentum will likely continue to accelerate. Of those existing Medicaid dentists who have not yet increased the number of Medicaid-covered patients they treat, 50% indicated that they expect to treat more Medicaid patients in the next year. Moreover, 26% of non-Medicaid providers said that the fee increase made them more likely to treat Medicaid-covered patients in the future.
ODA President Dr. Hal Jeter, a general dentist from South Point and a career-long Medicaid provider, is encouraged but not entirely surprised by the survey results. According to Jeter, “with the recent significant increases in reimbursements, the Medicaid fee schedule is now on par with many private insurers and in some cases even better.”
While this is good news for existing and new Medicaid dental providers, the real winners here are Medicaid-covered patients who now have better access to critical dental services and shorter wait times and travel distances to get into the dental office.
