Bridget Morlan called the number on her first-ever dental insurance card and held her breath. After more than 30 years of dealing with broken teeth, gum infections and toothaches that landed her in the emergency room dozens of times, the Baltimore woman hoped the new coverage would make everything better.
“I’m wishing for a miracle,” said Morlan, 53, whose teeth were badly damaged years ago by an abusive boyfriend and subsequent lack of care.
Maryland is one of just 15 states that does not cover dental care for adults on Medicaid, the government health insurance program for low-income people. But now the state has launched a pilot program to cover a small number of them — those with limited incomes who are also disabled. About 33,000 are eligible for the Adult Dental Pilot Program, the first time in nearly 50 years that some adults on Medicaid in Maryland will have basic dental coverage.