Florida Looks to Ease Its Access-to-Care Problem

With nearly 6 million Floridian living in dental health professional shortage areas, new legislation is aiming to ease this crisis in accessing dental care. The bill would authorize specific healthcare settings, such as federally qualified health centers and Head Start programs, to contract with mobile dental units to improve access to oral healthcare for vulnerable populations. The bill does not expand the scope of practice for dental hygienists, nor does it allow dental hygienists to bill public insurance programs directly. The Florida Dental Hygienists’ Association and a number of other community health organizations, politicians, and children’s advocacy groups all support the bill. The Florida Dental Association has yet to sign on. Click here to read more.