Dental industry leaders are preparing for what may be some harsh consequences of the recently enacted federal budget bill.
President Donald Trump signed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act July 4. The bill is expected to increase the national debt by $3.3 trillion, and lead to a decrease in Medicaid spending by nearly $1 trillion. The number of uninsured individuals is expected to grow by 11.8 million more people by 2034. The legislation has been criticized by many healthcare organizations, with many leaders denouncing the bill’s cuts to healthcare.
Melissa Burroughs, the senior director of public policy for the CareQuest Institute for Oral Health, called the bill’s passage a “dangerous setback,” adding that several provisions of the bill will make it more difficult for individuals to afford dental care and manage diseases linked to oral health.
“Deep cuts to Medicaid funding, new work requirements, and caps on the mechanisms that states use to fund the program threaten to drastically reduce access to care across the country,” she said. “At a time when we should be improving access to prevention and care, this bill moves in the wrong direction. We urge Congress to prioritize policies that protect and strengthen access to oral healthcare–not dismantle it.”
Source: ‘Those practices need a plan’: Dentists brace for impact of federal budget / Becker’s Dental