Solving the Access-To-Care Issue In Minnesota: State Becomes First to Sign Mid-Level Oral Health Care Providers Into Law (Lead Story‪)‬

The fight against oral disease is a matter of perspective. From the view of a private practice populated with patients who have adequate means and insurance, it may seem that the war has been won. From the view of an emergency room professional in a public hospital where underinsured patients frequently turn up when dental issues become complicated health problems, the battle needs front-line reinforcements. It is a situation that legislators, educators and oral health care providers are hoping to fortify with the signing of Minnesota Senate File 2083 (SF 2083), which creates the state's first mid-level providers, the dental therapist and the advanced dental therapist, in state statute on May 16, 2009.