BUCYRUS — Crawford County was one of nine Ohio counties selected for a potential new pilot program aimed at improving dental services for children.
Gov. Mike DeWine announced plans for the pilot program on Wednesday, a topic he addressed during his 2025 State of the State Address last week.
The program is part of the governor’s budget proposal that state lawmakers will consider.
According to an emailed press release, nearly two-thirds (64%) of the state’s school-age children on Medicaid in 2023 did not have a single dental visit all year. Among all Ohio children last school year, nearly one in five (19%) had at least one untreated dental cavity.
Poor dental health has been shown to negatively impact children in the classroom, causing students to struggle with focus, socialize less, fall behind on their homework, and miss school more often, DeWine stated.
“Poor dental health can make it hard for a child to eat, sleep, or even talk – let alone learn,” DeWine said. “It’s clear that many Ohio children have untreated, serious dental problems that follow them into adulthood. We must step up for these children.”
As part of the governor’s executive budget proposal, the pilot program will start by serving children in the nine Ohio counties designated as “Dental Health Professional Shortage Areas” ” and that lack “safety net dental clinics” – non-profit dental facilities that provide care to low-income families.
The nine counties selected are Crawford, Clinton, Gallia, Highland, Hocking, Monroe, Noble, Paulding and Washington.
Through the pilot program, ODH will bring together healthcare providers, school districts, and others to deploy dental programs directly to schools – providing screenings, preventative care, and treatment to children who have the most critical need for these services.
“Unlike vision screenings, Ohio does not require dental screenings in schools, and too many of our children are not receiving this essential care,” said Dr. Bruce Vanderhoff, Ohio Dept. of Health director.
“Untreated oral health conditions can lead to more serious health issues and even costly emergency department visits. This program will help improve our children’s health in some of the most underserved areas of the state,” Vanderhoff said.
If approved by the Ohio General Assembly, ODH anticipates the pilot program could provide dental services to as many as 12,000 Ohio children in these high-need counties who did not see a dentist in the past year.