The Oklahoma Health Care Authority announced this morning that three companies have been selected to receive managed care dental contracts for Oklahoma’s Medicaid oral health plans.
The companies are:
Dentaquest
Liberty Dental Plan of Oklahoma, Inc.
MCNA Dental
In the announcement, the OHCA said these companies, also known as dental benefit plans, will assign SoonerCare members to “dental homes” in order to increase preventative care and reduce the use of emergency services for dental issues. SoonerCare is the name for Oklahoma’s Medicaid program.
“Through the DBPs, we will be able to concentrate more on preventive care for the younger SoonerCare population,” OHCA dental director Dr. Karen Luce said in the press release. “Currently, the SoonerCare population under age 21 [is not regularly] utilizing the preventive care benefit. They tend to not be treated until there’s pain and need severe work. DBPs will incentivize members to have consistent appointments and have their teeth cleaned every six months. This change will prevent a good deal of restorative care and improve overall oral health.”
OHCA senior media relations professional Katelynn Burns said the agency’s most recent data about SoonerCare dental benefit usage show that, for Fiscal Year 2018, about 49 percent of children ages 3 to 20 had at least one preventive visit. About 16 percent of 1 and 2 year olds had a preventive visit.
The initial contracts, which start in June, will last for a year with an option to renew for five years at the discretion of the OHCA.
Source: Three companies receive Medicaid managed care dental contracts / NONDOC