Dr. Fotinos Panagakos, Associate Dean for Research at West Virginia University School of Dentistry, was awarded a grant from the CareQuest Institute for Oral Health to evaluate the implementation and impact of the adult dental Medicaid benefit in West Virginia. Dr. Panagakos is joined by co-investigators Drs. Kole Reddig, Jane Ruseski, and Daniel Grossman, all faculty in the Department of Economics, at the John Chambers College of Business and Economics, and Dr. Shyama Mahakalanda, Director of Health Analytics in the Office of Health Affairs on this important project. The $176,000 grant will fund the first year of a five-year project, which has as its goals to:
- Assess the current need for dental care among adult Medicaid recipients to determine the level of potential use and of pent-up demand for dental services.
- Characterize individuals using the dental benefit in the first plan year and the providers billing for the benefit.
- Evaluate the Adult Dental Program's impact on total (inpatient and outpatient) health care spending among dental care users and non-users and among individuals with selected chronic conditions, including diabetes, respiratory illnesses, and cardiovascular diseases.
- Evaluate the impact of the Adult Dental Program on emergency room utilization by Medicaid recipients.
- Evaluate the impact of the Adult Dental Program on chronic condition management among dental care users and non-users.
- Evaluate the impact of the Adult Dental Program on employment.
Joining the research team as advisors are Dr. Jason Roush, WV State Dental Director, Drs. Marko Vujicic and Chelsea Fosse, Health Policy Institute at the American Dental Association, Mr. Pat Finnerty, former director of Medicaid in Virginia, and Dr. Marcia Brand, Strategic Advisor to CareQuest Institute for Oral Health.