National study: Ohio gets ‘B’ for child dental care

A national study released this week by the Pew Children’s Dental Campaign gave Ohio a “B” in dental care for children  (Source: “Ohio gets only a B in dental care for children,” Cleveland Plain Dealer, May 24, 2011).

Making Coverage Matter  (pdf, 32 pages) is an annual report card for child dental care in all 50 states. This year’s report gave 27 states grades of A or B (Maryland had the highest rating) and 23 states and the District of Columbia a C or lower.

Ohio kept the same B average it got last year, and, like last year, scored above national standards in five of eight benchmarks.

According to the state’s report card, Ohio “faces significant challenges with its dental workforce. At least 1 million Ohioans live in 59 areas federally designated as having a shortage of dentists.”