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Western Dental Implements Caries Assessment Pilot Program for High Risk Children
[February 18, 2020]

Western Dental Implements Caries Assessment Pilot Program for High Risk Children


Western Dental & Orthodontics, one of the nation's leaders in accessible, affordable oral healthcare and the leading orthodontics provider in the country, has implemented a comprehensive cavity risk assessment program by expanding upon Medi-Cal's Dental Transformation Initiative Domain II (DTI (News - Alert)-2).

The initiative is designed to improve access to care for children aged 1 to 6 years old, manage caries by utilizing risk assessment, increase continuity of care and test other innovative programs such as teledentistry.

Dental caries (cavities) is the most common disease among children. Under the cavity prevention program, high-risk patients are eligible to receive services at increased frequency in 29 designated pilot counties in California.

Western Dental has more than 350 dentists in 175 offices located in those pilot counties. As part of the implementation of the program, Western Dental requires its dentists in pilot counties to receive risk assessment training and certification. As a result, Western Dental has more dentists trained statewide than any other dental provider and is the leader in cavity assessment in California.

"The risk assessment program we have implemented has led to a more customized approach to patient care and focuses attention and resources on patients with greatest need," said Dr. John Luther, Chief Dental Officer for Western Dental. "As a result, we'll be able to move our patient population from a higher risk to a lower risk for cavities."

The goal o the program is to proactively prevent cavities and other oral diseases by providing a broader range of preventive services, including self-management tools for parents and care givers to help children modify their behavior for improved oral health. Movement of a patient population from higher to lower risk is indicative of improved oral health, which is an important objective for insurance providers, including Medi-Cal Dental.



"Payers are adopting value-based strategies for improving quality and reducing cost," said Dr. Luther. "Western Dental's integration of risk assessment into its workflow will put us in the lead in the delivery of high quality, high value care."

ABOUT WESTERN DENTAL


Western Dental (with its supported affiliates, including Brident Dental & Orthodontics, Access Dental, Blue Hills Dental, South Texas Dental and Vital Smiles) is one of the nation's largest dental providers and is the leader in accessible, affordable oral healthcare, serving approximately 3.0 million patient visits annually in 324 affiliated offices throughout California, Texas, Arizona, Nevada and Alabama. In addition to general dentistry, Western Dental offers orthodontics, oral surgery, pediatric dentistry, periodontics and endodontics in its offices, creating a convenient full service "Dental Home."

In California, Western Dental is the leading provider of services to both adults and children in the Denti-Cal program - part of the Medi-Cal public insurance program that provides health care benefits for more than 13 million low-income individuals and families. Western Dental dentists provided care to a half-million Denti-Cal beneficiaries in 2019, and Western Dental is committed to continuing to partner with the State to improve the program. In Texas, Western Dental is the leading provider of Medicaid services and recently entered into a first-of-its-kind agreement to participate in a value-based care and payment model under the state's Medicaid program.

All of Western Dental's services are backed by a unique quality assurance system that electronically monitors all patient visits, treatments, dental staff and clinical performance to enable high-quality care. To learn more about Western Dental or inquire about an office in your community, visit www.westerndental.com or call 1-800-6-DENTAL.


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