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Comparison of Access and Costs of Medicaid Dental Services in a Hospital Clinic and Community Practices
Author(s) -
Marcus Marvin,
Coulter Ian,
Mann Joyce,
Leibowitz Arleen,
Buchanan Joan
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
journal of public health dentistry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.64
H-Index - 63
eISSN - 1752-7325
pISSN - 0022-4006
DOI - 10.1111/j.1752-7325.1996.tb02462.x
Subject(s) - medicaid , medicine , family medicine , payment , dental care , capitation fee , health care , medical emergency , capitation , business , finance , economics , economic growth
Abstract Objectives : This paper reports the results of a three‐year evaluation of access to dental care and its associated costs for Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) beneficiaries enrolled in a hospital‐based health maintenance organization (HMO) or a fee‐for‐service (FFS) option. Methods : Medicaid enrollees ( n =3,655) having a year of eligibility were assigned to either the hospital HMO or FFS care, and their use of dental care and its costs compared. Results : A higher percent of those beneficiaries enrolled in the FFS option used dental care than those in the HMO plan. FFS enrollees also had more annual visits per person than those in the randomly assigned HMO group. FFS dental patients treated in the hospital had the highest costs of any payment‐provider combination studied. Conclusions : To understand the mix of utilization rates, visits, and costs, one must take into account the way in which the HMO hospital plan is reimbursed, the way in which the dental department is reimbursed, and the way in which the dental provider is reimbursed.