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high quality of care dental therapists provide. The time has arrived for the United States to develop a new workforce model to care for our children’s oral health.” 6 Gregory Nycz, Director, Family Health Center of Marshfield Inc., Marshfield, Wisconsin: “As a community health center director, I know that providing good quality dental care brings value in and of itself, which is reason enough to do it. However, the fact that it has many positive impacts on overall health should strengthen our resolve to eliminate oral health disparities. The fact is that for certain individuals, oral health treatment may greatly bring down their medical care costs.” insurance can receive care on a sliding-scale fee basis. There are more than 1,100 FQHCs around the country,41 and nearly 3.5 million people received dental services in the health center system in 2009.42 Health centers play an important role in the delivery of oral health services to vulnerable populations who would otherwise go without care, yet some areas do not have FQHCs and some centers report that they are simply unable to provide care to everyone who needs it. A major expansion of FQHCs is underway across the country as a result of the health reform bill, yet further focus on dental care through the FQHC program could go a long way toward reaching those currently without access to dental care. An increase in the number of dental providers through the National Health Service Corps would also promote further access through FQHCs. School-Based Health Centers (SBHCs), another essential part of the health care safety net, provide needed services for children while in school, particularly those students who lack insurance or have limited access to providers in the community. There are nearly 2,000 school-based health centers around the country.43 According to the Institute of Medicine, students with access to SBHCs are more likely to see a dentist.44 Although SBHCs offer significant potential to increase access to dental care and many do provide preventive services, only a small percentage of schools have professional dental providers on staff or are equipped to provide dental care to students.45 More SBHCs should provide dental care in conjunction with primary medical and other services to expand access to children. Furthermore, innovations such as portable dental clinics and telehealth technologies can be used in these and other settings to reach those in greatest need. It is important that we expand on the community- and school-based models that are already working. Expanding Coverage and Increasing Reimbursement Rates Another potential solution to increase access, for those least likely to have it, is to expand dental coverage to adults on Medicaid.Requiring a minimum adult dental benefit under Medicaid would ensure coverage for those who now cannot afford to pay out of pocket for care. Now is also the time to consider new ways to encourage more dentists to treat people with Medicaid. Even during these tough economic times, states are taking significant steps to improve dentists’ willingness to treat children with Medicaid including addressing administrative challenges and increasing reimbursement rates.46 According to a 2011 study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, when Medicaid payment to dentists increased, children were more likely to see a provider.47 However, while inDr. Gregory Folse, President, Outreach Dentistry, Lafayette, Louisiana: “I provide comprehensive dentistry to older people and people with disabilities in nursing facilities. Although providing portable dental services can be done, and done very well, our country lacks the needed infrastructure to care for our most vulnerable patients – our poor, aged, blind, and disabled citizens. Treating this population may not always be easy but doing so has great personal value to all involved.” Kiah Morris, Bennington, Vermont: “When I was pregnant, I had a tooth infection that had gotten into my lymph nodes and I needed a root canal, but adult