Dentists could get higher pay from Medicaid as part of Tennessee’s proposed expansion

Dentists are generally supportive of Gov. Bill Lee’s proposal to expand dental coverage to everyone on TennCare. But they’re reserving their full-throated support until the details are worked out.

The proposal also includes a $94 million investment in the state’s two dental schools and loan forgiveness for graduates who go work in underserved areas.

“We are pleased to see proposed new funding to address oral health care issues, particularly among rural and underserved populations,” says a statement from the Tennessee Dental Association, which helped craft the governor’s plan. “We don’t see it as a single piece, but as a range of proposals, and will evaluate what comes out of committee as it moves forward through the legislative process.”

A frequent criticism of Medicaid programs like TennCare is that no matter how many people have coverage, dentists don’t get paid much to see them.

More: TennCare proposes offering care to just about everyone in the program

Dr. Jeannie Beauchamp of Clarksville, the past president of the Tennessee Dental Association, says dentists can even lose money on some low-paying procedures.

“You could not have a practice [in which] you have more than 35% or 40% Medicaid patients because you’d go broke,” she says.

A TennCare spokesperson says the agency is planning to increase what it pays dentists for some existing services, which are primarily for children and people with disabilities, by an average of 6.5%. Preventative and minimally invasive services will get the biggest boost.

But rates haven’t been set for the more than 600,000 adults that would get new coverage under the governor’s plan, though TennCare has $75 million in the governor’s budget to pay for the expansion.