The dental profession assuredly will tell us there are reasons for prices that seem awfully high. I don't know how families keep up. Why can't Medicare get more involved in helping people with dental expenses? "This is America and you have to pull your own weight." That's what Republicans say, never mind that it's chest-thumping by people who feel they show a certain kind of bravado saying it. Those same people are happy to avail themselves of government programs.
I just don't know how families keep up with it all.
A recent radio discussion brought to light a scary dimension: the specter of intrusion of human services (or child protective services) if you don't follow a diligent dental care protocol.
We all believe in good dental care. It's the obvious civilized approach to take. I'm confounded by the cost having spiraled into orbit. The radio guys chewed over a report from out East that a dental practice was communicating with its customers in a way that can be deemed threatening. It's threatening in a Big Brother sort of way.
Empowered by government "mandatory reporting" laws, dental offices appear to be casting the cloud of "child abuse" charges if families don't follow the recommended protocol of dental care. A Pennsylvania dental practice sent a letter to a family saying that if it didn't get regular professional cleanings for their child, well, there would be hell to pay. The parents could be charged with "dental neglect" based on Pennsylvania Act 31 on child abuse recognition. The parents faced the specter of being reported to state authorities.
One observer wondered "is this fake?" The writer of a commentary piece speculated that this letter is the start of a wave of intimidation toward parents, the vast majority of whom I'm sure are exemplary. If the government (with entitlements) isn't going to step in more and assist with medical/dental needs, adults as well as kids, what is to become of our society? Will people stop having kids?
I hand it to people who have the standard family that includes approximately three kids, even in the face of foreboding financial challenges. I am told "there is a lot of poverty" in the Lac qui Parle school district which is all too close to us here in Morris, so how will the economic winds blow here?
People may still have kids but can they be expected to raise them showing pretty much their own judgment? Republicans are great for saying we're a free nation lifted by the sheer credo of freedom. It doesn't work so well anymore. A great many people put off going to the dentist, avoiding the dental office for long stretches of time for financial reasons. This is not appropriate for a civilized nation. All those freedom-talkers need to realize they are just irritating windbags and start to accept reality. We need some European-style socialism in America. It may come but only after a catastrophic economic collapse that forces a change in thinking.
The Pennsylvania dental office that I'm reporting about explains, in the face of criticism, that physicians and dentists are "mandated reporters" who are "required to report suspected cases of abuse and neglect to social service or law enforcement agencies in order to prevent such tragedy." Abuse and neglect! What if you're struggling to support a family of four, in Lac qui Parle or anywhere else, and you're suddenly recommended to get orthodontic service for one or more of your kids. The cost of that is like for the Space Shuttle or so it seems.
I remember when my dad took me to good ol' Dr. Albani in Benson when I was junior high age. I'm quite certain the price of braces and all dental services was substantially less.
Dental prices have skyrocketed. I was flabbergasted the last time I left the dentist office, after something other than a routine cleaning, at the cost I was quoted. I paid it of course but haven't been back since, except for my elderly mother because certainly I have to follow all recommendations for her (as a vulnerable adult). Me? The state of my health isn't important. I'm not vulnerable. I'm expendable.
A spokesman for that Pennsylvania dental office says their intimidating letter to parents "(jars them) to realize that with a child comes responsibility." Such chutzpah. The guys in the radio discussion noted that it's tough enough getting dragged into the web of child protective services even if you're a good parent. A mother in Ontario, Canada, wanted a second opinion on getting fillings for her daughter and decided to change providers. The rejected dentist called child protective services to report "possible oral neglect." The case was dismissed. But protective services kept the mother's name in their files. How outrageously intrusive.
I can relate to these parents' anxiety because I care for a vulnerable adult, 93 years old. We have had a police officer come to the house. That officer who BTW was quite friendly, noticed absolutely nothing wrong and departed, but I was informed later that she communicated with human services. Why? There was no follow-up from human services because the personnel there are well familiar with my family and consider me to be a capable caregiver.
A media commentator observed "the issue here is how easy it is to drag a family into an abuse investigation, and how hard it is for the family, like an impacted molar, to get itself extracted." The partnership between medical providers and government child welfare services has threatened innocent families. I feel in league with those families. "Nanny monitors" are everywhere, in classrooms and cafeterias and medical offices.
Parents need some praise and empathy for taking on a pretty substantial responsibility of parenthood, especially in circumstances that can described as "poverty" like in the Lac qui Parle school district. The cost of medical care gets a lot of discussion in the public sphere these days. Surprisingly, we don't hear as much about dental care.
Dental insurance? Ha!
Upon researching a little, I discovered something I have suspected for a long time: "dental insurance" isn't what it's cracked up to be. I have wondered: if dental insurance is such a blessing, a panacea as it were, what would happen if everyone has it? Would dentists make substantially less money? No, the dentists will get their money. Insurance appears to do little beyond routine checkups and cleanings.
I have been informed that if you have insurance, you are required to see your dentist every six months. Requirements, requirements. You're dealing with 50 percent co-pays for complicated and expensive procedures. Most dental plans limit coverage to just $1500 a year. That can be small change when you look at the cost of many procedures.
So your kid needs braces? Better go gown to the basement and print more money. Or, beg your senators and representatives to get more involved with (benevolent) government resources and help. Like in Denmark. Hail Denmark!
Even people with dental insurance are likely to put off dental visits, a shame when you consider that oral health is closely connected to overall health. But this is America, right? And we pay our own bills in America, right? We can imagine John Wayne saying this. But John Wayne is dead.
Dentists on average are now making more money than many physicians. Meanwhile one in four non-elderly Americans has untreated tooth decay. Dental pricing lacks transparency.
But let's remember the real issue here, I say sarcastically: the "fake news" Washington Post! We are a nation of lemmings.
Addendum: I had Dr. Jorgenson when we first came to Morris. Very nice and capable. Getting a simple filling was probably a nominal expense. He eventually turned his practice over to someone who I felt was rather unstable mentally and emotionally, subject to anger control challenges. We had to leave that individual. I am glad he no longer lives in Morris.
Addendum No. 2: What about parents that allow their sons to play football?
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota -bwilly73@yahoo.com
