This impact report explores the results of the Medical Oral Expanded Care (MORE Care®) Ohio pilot program (MORE Care OH), a two-year pilot program designed to integrate oral health into pediatric primary care across six counties in Ohio. Led by CareQuest Institute for Oral Health and Oral Health Ohio, the initiative brought together seven private and health-system-affiliated practices to expand access to preventive dental services for nearly 20,000 children.
Noteworthy results from the program include:
- Oral health integration during well-child visits increased from less than 1% to an average of 8%, with Medicaid-covered visits reaching 10%, highlighting the growing role of medical providers in preventive oral health.
- Preventive dental services rose from 30% to 34% of all dental visits, while surgical interventions declined from 16% to 12%, reflecting a shift toward minimally invasive, risk-based care.
- 407 dental referrals were made by medical practices, with 34% resulting in completed visits and 83% of those referrals successfully closed through coordinated follow-up.
The report’s findings offer a roadmap for scaling medical-dental integration statewide and nationally, emphasizing the importance of collaborative infrastructure, data-informed practices, and Medicaid policy alignment to improve whole-person care.
The authors write:
Establishing rooted, community-based relationships between medical and dental professionals is as important as the number of patients that benefited from this project.”
You may also be interested in:
- Teledentistry as a Tool for Health Care Transformation, a journal article highlighting the role of technology and regulatory changes to improve access to oral health care.
- A Simple Alternative Payment Model to Incentivize Periodontal Care for Diabetes Mellitus Patients in Community Health Centers, a tool that helps integrated care settings simulate potential cost savings by covering scaling and root planning for diabetes patients.
- Integration and Coordination to Improve the Patient Experience, a self-paced, online course that explores the value of coordinated care and interprofessional collaboration to support whole-person health. Eligible for 1 free CE credit.
