Policy Briefs

In its June 2010 report, Washington’s ABCD Program: Improving Dental Care for Medicaid-Insured Children, The Pew Center on the States surveys the remarkable impact that one program in Washington State made in confronting dental disease among Medicaid-insured children under age six.  Since its inception in 1994, the Access to Baby and Child Dentistry (ABCD) program has been established in 30 of Washington’s 39 counties and demonstrated impressive results: Click here to view

In The Pew Center on the States recent fact sheet entitled, The Cost of Delay: State Dental Policies Fail 1 in 5 Children, Washington received a B grade for meeting or exceeding 5 of 8 policy benchmarks for addressing children’s dental health needs. Click here to view

Washington State’s Oral Health Workforce, authored by the Center for Health Workforce Studies in November 2009, describes the characteristics of the state’s oral health workforce, impact on underserved populations, and policy options. Click here to view

The Pew Center on the States, National Academy for State Health Policy, and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation developed Help Wanted: A Policy Makers Guide to New Dental Providers, May 2009. This resource about oral health workforce expansions covers the options and factors policy makers should consider when making decisions on this issue. Click here to view

Training New Dental Health Providers in the US, December 2009. Click here to view

Training New Dental Health Providers in the US, Policy Brief, December 2009. Click here to view