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American Dental Education Association
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Volume 1, No. 27, August 20, 2019

Delaware Adds Dental Benefits for Adult Medicaid Patients
 
On Aug. 6, Gov. John Carney (D-DE) signed [ [link removed] ] legislation that granted dental benefits to adult Medicaid patients in Delaware. The bill [ [link removed] ] allows patients to receive up to $1,000 in annual assistance for preventive and restorative treatment, and allows the Delaware Department of Health and Social Services to authorize an additional $1,500 per patient for emergency treatment. Adult patients will be required to pay a $3 copay for dental treatment.
 
Following implementation of the new Delaware law, Tennessee and Alabama will be the only states that offer no dental benefits for adult Medicaid patients. ADEA will continue to monitor implementation of this policy as it moves through the regulatory process.

ADEA Staff Attend State Legislatures Summit
 
Every August, the National Conference of State Legislatures [ [link removed] ] hosts its annual Legislative Summit [ [link removed] ] where over 5,500 state legislators, legislative staff, nonprofit institutions and business stakeholders convene to discuss the most important issues facing states today.
 
This year’s event took place in Nashville, TN, and members of the ADEA Advocacy and Governmental Relations (AGR) staff attended to network with legislators and colleagues, and to learn about innovative state policies. Among the educational sessions AGR staff attended were sessions that addressed new state policies to expand access to oral health care, professional licensure portability, state innovations of health systems and the power of storytelling in conveying an advocacy message.
 
Additionally, for the first time at this event, ADEA AGR hosted a booth in the conference exhibit hall. The booth provided an opportunity for AGR staff to meet legislators and discuss issues related to oral health, licensure and student loan repayment programs. AGR staff also distributed material describing the vital role ADEA Member Institutions play in America’s dental safety net [ [link removed] ] , important changes to dental licensure [ [link removed] ] and ways in which dental institutions are addressing the prescription of opioids and its misuse [ [link removed] ] .

Wisconsin Sees Movement on Medicaid Expansion, Missouri Creates Health Care Coverage Task Force
 
Democratic lawmakers in Wisconsin announced on Aug. 5 intentions [ [link removed] ] to renew their push to expand Medicaid in the state. While this effort is supported by Gov. Tony Evers (D-WI), it has previously been opposed [ [link removed] ] in multiple instances by the Republican-controlled legislature. The renewed push would involve a standalone bill to expand Medicaid eligibility to 133% above the federal poverty level, up from 100%. If the state elects to further expand Medicaid, it would become eligible to receive 90% of its funding for expansion populations from the federal government.
 
In Missouri, Gov. Mike Parson (R) signed an executive order to create a task force that would explore a waiver application [ [link removed] ] under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which could also include a proposal for expanding Medicaid. The task force’s goal in developing the waiver is to drive down health care costs and make the marketplace more competitive for consumers. Other states have adopted a similar strategy of applying for a waiver that allows them to expand Medicaid on their own terms, instead of following the guidelines set forth in the ACA. Recommendations from the task force could impact Missouri’s health care exchange as well as potentially allowing for Medicaid to cover more Missouri citizens.
 
Gov. Parson said he hasn’t previously been receptive [ [link removed] ] to expanding Medicaid as provided under the ACA because he believed Missouri’s Medicaid system is “broken.”

Trump Administration Will Disqualify Some Permanent Resident-status Applicants on Public Charge Grounds
 
The Trump Administration published a final rule on Aug. 14 in the Federal Register [ [link removed] ] regarding what is known as “public charge.” It is a "term of art" encompassing policies that would deny admission to the United States and permanent resident status to those who have received, or the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) determines might receive, a public benefit, i.e., Medicaid, nutritional assistance, public housing assistance, etc.
 
Those who have studied the proposed rule state that it will lead to many more individuals not having health care coverage. They argue it could also lead to keeping families apart or splitting families now living together, as parents must choose whether to leave the U.S. and take their U.S.-citizen children with them, or leave the children behind so that they may receive proper care.
 
The proposed rule was overwhelmingly opposed by the 260,000 comments received, including by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, hospitals, health provider groups, and local Chambers of Commerce. ADEA also joined with the Partnership for Medicaid in December 2018 in opposition to the proposed rule.
 
The rule states that if an individual has been a public charge for any 12 of the past 36 months, then they are disqualified from attaining permanent resident status. If DHS determines that an individual might become a public charge, that person is denied entry into the United States.
 
The final rule is effective on Oct. 15.

ADEA State Calendar [ [link removed] ]

ADEA Washington Calendar [ [link removed] ]

ADEA U.S. Interactive Legislative and Regulatory Tracking Map [ [link removed] ]

Key Federal Issues [ [link removed] ]

Key State Issues [ [link removed] ]

The ADEA Advocate [ [link removed] ] is published weekly. Its purpose is to keep ADEA members abreast of federal and state issues and events of interest to the academic dentistry and the dental and research communities.
 
©2019
American Dental Education Association
655 K Street, NW, Suite 800
Washington, DC 20001
202-289-7201, adea.org [ [link removed] ]

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B. Timothy Leeth, CPA
ADEA Chief Advocacy Officer
 
Phillip Mauller, M.P.S.
ADEA Director of State Relations and Advocacy
 
Ambika R. Srivastava, M.P.H.
ADEA/Sunstar Americas, Inc./Jack Bresch Legislative Intern
 
[email protected] [ mailto:[email protected]?subject=State%20Update%3A%20 ]

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