Two Florida lawmakers have joined a coalition of dentists to oppose a proposal to eliminate the state's prepaid dental health plan for children, which serves about 1.8 million children.
The Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA) has proposed that Medicaid take over dental services for children as part of a larger shift to a statewide Medicaid managed care model, according to a tampabay.com story.
State Sen. Anitere Flores (R-Miami) believes the state should keep the dental plan for kids, noting that the program works.
State Rep. Jose Felix Diaz (R-Miami) noted that the $200 million the state allocates for children's dental care benefits will soon be used to serve both children and adults, saying that services could be cut for children in order to also cover adults.
Diaz and Flores are sponsoring bills that would require AHCA to keep the prepaid dental program. The Coalition for Independent Dentistry expressed its support for the plan Thursday in a letter to Gov. Rick Scott.
The AHCA said it does not want to alter the method for providing dental services to children and adults as outlined in the statewide Medicaid managed care program. The agency said the managed care plans in reform have outperformed a fee-for-service and a statewide prepaid plan.
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