VA DENTAL TREATMENT UPDATE 2 July 2008
Posted by Service Officer on July 2nd, 2008
Legislation has been introduced in Congress that would provide veterans and their dependents with access to dental insurance. The bills would allow the Department of Veterans’ Affairs (VA) to establish a dental program for the 7.9 million veterans, surviving spouses, and certain dependent children enrolled in VA health care system. The program, which is completely voluntary, would give them the benefit of VA’s buying power in order to get lower premiums on dental insurance coverage. Sen. Richard Burr (R-NC) said, “Healthy teeth are an important part of overall health, and our veterans should have access to affordable dental care. This legislation would provide veterans with access to group insurance rates they may not otherwise be able to get on their own.” The legislation calls for an annual enrollment period with the ability to cancel insurance once a year or if a person is prevented by a serious medical condition from receiving any dental benefits or moves to a place where dental insurance cannot be used, such as overseas. Rep. Steve Buyer introduced his bill on 17 JUN. Sen. Richard Burr (R-NC) introduced his version on 23 JUN. The only significant difference between Buyer’s House bill, HR 6277, Richard Burr (R-NC) bill, S 3178, is that Buyer would authorize, but not require, VA to create the insurance program, while Burr would mandate its creation. In a statement, Buyer described the idea as similar to the Tricare Retiree Dental Program (TRDP) for retirees created in 1997 that now covers about 800,000 people, including military retirees, National Guard and reserve members and families.
VA provides such care to veterans with service-connected dental disabilities, those who are 100% disabled for any condition, and those who were prisoners of war for 90 days or longer. Additionally, veterans newly separated from active duty can receive one-time dental treatment from VA if their discharge records show they were receiving dental treatment that was not completed before they were discharged. The bills would not replace any dental services provided by VA. While Buyer talked about the military’s Tricare Reserve Dental Program as a success, military retirees have complained about that program’s cost and the fact that the government does not subsidize the insurance. As a result, dental premiums are higher for some military retirees than their premiums for health care. Premiums for military retirees vary by region, with family coverage costing $90.57 a month in Arkansas, $121.39 in the District of Columbia and $138.66 in California. In addition to the monthly premiums, an annual deductible must be met before any dental expenses are covered. The insurance plan also does not fully cover all costs. For example, it covers only 60% of the cost of a tooth extraction and only 80% of the cost of a filling. New enrollees also sometimes must wait for a year before they are eligible for some coverage, such as dentures and orthodontics. [Source: Marine Corps Times Rick Maze article 26 Jun 08 ++]
