Any cuts to Medicaid funding could lead to worsening health issues and more accessibility challenges, one DSO executive is warning.
The House Budget Committee released its budget blueprint for Fiscal Year 2025 Feb. 12, and voted to advance the resolution to the full House for approval. The proposal directs House committees to cut spending by at least $1.5 trillion, with the goal of reducing spending by $2 trillion over 10 years. The Energy and Commerce Committee, which is responsible for matters related to public health and the Department of Health and Human Services, is specifically being asked to cut $880 billion over the course of a decade.
The directive has led government officials and healthcare works to believe that cuts to Medicaid and other safety net programs are likely. Lawmakers are now being urged to avoid cuts to such programs.
Barry Lyon, DDS, a chief dental officer for the division of orthodontics and pediatric dentistry for Dental Care Alliance, spoke with Becker's about the potential effects Medicaid cuts could have on dentistry.
Editor's note: This Q&A is part of a weekly series featuring Dr. Lyon focused on topics in the dental industry and DSO field. The views expressed are those of Dr. Lyon and do not necessarily reflect those of Dental Care Alliance.
This response was lightly edited for clarity and length.
Dr. Barry Lyon: Should Medicaid cuts come to fruition, the impact on the most vulnerable Americans will be seismic.
The House Republican budget includes an $880 billion cut to programs that fall under the jurisdiction of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, which includes Medicaid. To further add to the anxiety of these proposed cuts were contradictory statements made by the administration. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. uttered numerous false statements regarding how Medicaid receives funding and the high cost of premiums and deductibles. Trump formerly said Medicaid funding would not be cut before he backed the budget that would bring about hundreds of billions of dollars in cuts. If, in fact, these cuts occur, there would be widespread fallout. Any state with budget woes would have to make up the difference, and their citizens could be left without Medicaid eligibility and benefits. This would impact those in rural areas, those living below the poverty line and approximately 40% of children in the U.S. Professor Edwin Park of the Georgetown University McCourt School of Public Policy Center for Children and Families said, "states will either have to dramatically raise taxes and drastically cut other parts of their budget including K-12 education or, as is far more likely, institute deep, damaging cuts to Medicaid eligibility, benefits and provider and plan payment rates.”
Andrea Ducas, the vice president for health policy at the Center for American Progress, also predicted that fewer people being insured would put everyone else’s health at risk, especially during future pandemics or natural disasters.
Reductions in Medicaid benefits for dental care would have far reaching implications. The oral health of Americans would suffer, and that would contribute to decreased overall health and wellbeing. Emergency room visits for dental issues would rise and lead to increased healthcare costs. If states needed to reduce benefit coverage for Medicaid, millions of Americans would lose access to care when dentists decide they could no longer afford to be Medicaid providers.
If you really want a nightmare scenario, imagine what could happen if Kennedy’s preposterous suggestion that fluoride be removed from public water supplies occurs during the proposed Medicaid cuts.