Hopkins, lawmakers push to reform dental care in Rhode Island

CRANSTON, R.I. — At Children’s Dental Health, dentists have spent the last few weeks raising awareness of the importance of pediatric dental care. Additionally, local lawmakers reintroduced a bill that would increase transparency in dental insurance.

“I’m proud to support this important cause, and I’m excited to see the partnership between our Cranston Public School Department and the RI Dental Association continue,” Mayor Hopkins said. “Providing free dental screenings to our school-age children with unmet oral health needs is a critical step towards ensuring every child in Cranston has access to necessary dental care.”

On Feb. 23, Mayor Hopkins signed a proclamation supporting the American and RI Dental Association’s celebration of February as National Children’s Dental Health Month.

A corresponding resolution is to be presented by the City Council Monday.

Last month, local lawmakers reintroduced a bill to ensure more patient’s premiums are being spent on patient care.

The bill would encourage more Rhode Islanders to get the dental care they need.

If passed, the Fair Share for Dental Care Act would require insurers to spend at least 85% of customers’ premiums on patient care or refund the difference.

Dental insurers would no longer be able to spend that money on things like salaries or administrative costs.

They Mayor’s office also shared that beginning in March, Dr. Shenoy of RI Periodontics will be working with the Cranston School Department by visiting schools to provide free dental screenings to children.

Families interested in dental screenings for their children should inquire through the school department.

Delta Dental of Rhode Island provided this statement in response:

Applying unreasonable loss ratios to dental insurance will result in significantly higher premiums for employers, higher out-of-pocket costs for patients and less overall value in dental plans. That is precisely why the bill was opposed last year by members of the state’s business community and organized labor, representing hundreds of thousands of our state’s residents who would be negatively impacted financially.

The National Coalition of Insurance Legislators (NCOIL) recently released a model reporting bill that was agreed upon by both the American Dental Association (ADA) and the National Association of Dental Plans. Similar legislation has been introduced in Rhode Island, which Delta Dental of Rhode Island supports. If passed, the Office of the Health Insurance Commissioner would lead a comprehensive study to determine the appropriateness of a dental loss ratio for Rhode Island dental insurers while ensuring Rhode Island residents are able to maintain the affordable, accessible dental care they need and deserve.