Adults

Everyone deserves to enjoy the benefits of good oral health.

Achieving health equity includes ensuring everyone has access oral health care. Unfortunately, oral health disparities persist. Communities of color, rural areas, lower-income households, and people who speak a language other than English at home disproportionately experience the effects of poor oral health and are more likely to face barriers to accessing care.

To achieve health equity, we need to ensure adults have access to dental care when needs emerge and public health measures that help prevent oral disease before it happens. Poor oral health can have impacts beyond an unappealing smile or bad breath. Tooth loss and visible cavities can impact employment opportunities, nutrition, self-confidence, and how others perceive you. Untreated cavities and oral disease also can affect overall health, influencing chronic conditions like heart disease, pregnancy, stroke, diabetes, and general well-being.

Smart investments that expand access to preventive measures like water fluoridation and timely oral health care can profoundly impact a person’s life and advance health equity in our communities. Everyone deserves to enjoy the benefits of good oral health.

If you or a family member needs help finding a Washington state dentist, click here.

Click here to urge lawmakers to continue their support for comprehensive Apple Health adult dental benefits.