EP04: Lack of Dental Coverage by Medicare (Interview with Taneika Duhaney)

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Have you ever wondered why Medicare doesn't have a dental benefit? Wonder why it's a longstanding problem? In this week's episode, Melissa Batchelor, together with her special guest, Taneika Duhaney, talks about the lack of dental coverage by medicare.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">She's a dental hygienist and a healthcare administrator for the United States Navy. She was also a health and aging policy fellow who got interested in improving oral health for older adults.</span></p> <p><strong>Part One of ‘Lack of Dental Coverage by Medicare_Interview with Taneika Duhaney’</strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">We've done a lot of things to improve our oral health. We've put fluoride in our water, we've developed the ability to put sealants on teeth. That has helped protect people from getting cavities and losing teeth. But as we age, we still see a lot of cavities, people losing teeth, a lot of gum disease. And the biggest reason for that is just the lack of ability to pay for dental services. So, the term oral health refers to your mouth that's free of broken teeth, sores, infections, things like that.</span></p> <p><strong><em>“The development of clinical practice guidelines is important to create age-friendly evidence-based care.” — Melissa Batchelor </em></strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The world health organization ranks oral diseases as one of the top noncommunicable diseases, which means a disease that you get by infection. It is a top problem globally. And so here in the United States, we have people that hadn't seen a dentist in over a year because they're paying out of pocket for dental care and lack of insurance.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Ultimately, what this means is that dental problems aren't taken care of early in the fight. They tend to fester, grow, and this can lead to infections, even hospitalization, and sometimes can also result in death.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The developmen