BOSTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–A new national poll shows that the vast majority of voters across the political spectrum favor adding dental coverage to Medicare. The results of the poll, commissioned by CareQuest Institute for Oral Health® and the Oral Health Progress and Equity Network (OPEN), show that more than 9 in 10 national voters (92%) support adding a dental benefit to Medicare.
“These poll results show that people all across our nation understand just how important oral health is to overall health,” said Melissa Burroughs, director of public policy at CareQuest Institute. “No one in this country should have to choose between getting the care they need and putting food on the table. As candidates consider their health care platforms this year, the informed ones will make Medicare dental coverage a top priority.”
Half of all Medicare enrollees don’t have dental coverage, meaning nearly 24 million older Americans lack access to this essential form of health care. Approximately the same number of Medicare enrollees haven’t visited a dentist in 12 months, which has profound implications for the health and well-being of older adults.
The poll revealed that 85% of respondents who voted for Trump in both 2016 and 2020 and 99% of those who voted for the Democrat candidate in those two elections would like to see a dental benefit added to Medicare. When ranking health care topics they find “most important,” voters rank adding dental coverage to Medicare just as highly as abortion and even higher than the future of the Affordable Care Act. Dental care also ranked the highest on the list of services that voters would like to see added to Medicaid.
Source: New National Poll Shows Overwhelming Bipartisan Support for Medicare Dental Coverage / businesswire