Tennessee meets half of the eight policy benchmarks aimed at addressing children's dental health needs. The state's Medicaid program continues to exceed the national benchmarks for payments to dentists and the percentage of Medicaid enrollees ages one to 18 receiving dental care.
Tennessee does not report data on dental health to the National Oral Health Surveillance System. Although the state did not reimburse primary care physicians for providing basic preventive services such as fluoride varnish in 2010, Tennessee was preparing to adopt this policy as the Pew report was being finalized.1
1. “Contract Between the State of Tennessee, Department of Finance and Administration, Bureau of TennCare and Delta Dental of Tennessee,” October 1, 2010. http://www.tn.gov/tenncare/forms/TennDent.pdf, (accessed November 11, 2010).