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North Carolina meets three of the eight policy benchmarks aimed at addressing children’s dental health needs, one less than it met in 2010. While the state succeeds in bringing dental care to more than half of its Medicaid-enrolled children, it fell below the benchmark for Medicaid payments relative to dentists’ usual fees.

Due to its large budget deficit, North Carolina recently cut funding to a significant portion of the state’s oral health program, which used public-sector hygienists to promote dental health.¹

1. “Loss of Hygienists Illustrates Crisis,” Daily Reflector, Greenville, N.C. (November 14, 2010) http://www.reflector.com/opinion/editorials/editorial-loss-hygienists-illustrates-crisis-175640; (accessed November 14, 2010).