For lack of a dentist, a life was lost

[pegkerr]

This story makes me angry.

Twelve-year-old Deamonte Driver died of a toothache Sunday [February 25].

A routine, $80 tooth extraction might have saved him.

If his mother had been insured.

If his family had not lost its Medicaid.

If Medicaid dentists weren't so hard to find.

If his mother hadn't been focused on getting a dentist for his brother, who had six rotted teeth.

By the time Deamonte's own aching tooth got any attention, the bacteria from the abscess had spread to his brain, doctors said. After two operations and more than six weeks of hospital care, the Prince George's County boy died.

Deamonte's death and the ultimate cost of his care, which could total more than $250,000, underscore an often-overlooked concern in the debate over universal health coverage: dental care.

We absolutely have to fix health care in this country. It should be a universal right. I have read that if this isn't addressed, then in ten years, one out of every five dollars spent in this country will be spent on health care. And of course, there will be more uninsured every year.

Here is a follow up article, about how Deamonte's death has spurred legislators to try to address dental care for the poor.

Too late for Deamonte, of course.

Madness.

Comments

[glinda-w.livejournal.com]

This was discussed on John Scalzi's blog (http://www.scalzi.com/whatever/004910.html#comments) a few days ago.

That one dollar out of five is quite probable. Me, with Social Security disability, I spend over 19% of my monthly income on Medicare premiums and co-pays. And that's without factoring in any co-pays for office visits or non-routine medications (such as antibiotics for the current sinus infection). And I'm one of the so-called lucky ones - I have insurance. (Don't get me started on the horror that is Medicare Plan D though.)

*sigh*

[wintersweet.livejournal.com]

Gah. Scary.

I haven't been to the dentist, except to get my wisdom teeth out in an emergency, since I was 12 or 14 or so. (I'm 29.)

I have a $1000+ medical procedure coming up. I'm going to manage to get it, with the help of family, but I'm lucky in that respect. However, getting them to help pay for that means there's no money left for the dentist or several other issues.

But, as people keep telling me, young people like myself don't *need* health insurance.

[phoenixsong]

But, as people keep telling me, young people like myself don't *need* health insurance.

*shock* Right, because every 20-something-year-old is perfectly healthy. Tell that to my sister who was diagnosed with MS before she turned 22.

People are idiots, and I'm sorry for whatever it is you need the surgery for. Gah...people are SUCH IDIOTS.

[dd-b.livejournal.com]

The argument *for* single-payer (which in anything like present times means government-controlled) health care is that insurance works best with the largest pool of participants; it's about sharing the risk around. Subsidiary arguments include the fact that a lot of expensive stuff ends up being done inefficiently and too late (too expensive) via emergency rooms, since the people (and often by law, anyway) are unwilling to just let people die right there in front of them. Yet another subsidiary argument is that people who've had mostly good health tend to underestimate their risk of desperately needing health care fairly soon.

The argument *against* positive rights (rights that actually make other people give you things or do things specially for you) seems pretty strong to me too, though. It's fine to say something is "a right"; it's not so fine IMHO to say "everybody else has to work for free to give you this stuff you deserve". There's a conflict there, and I think the right to own your own body, time, life must win. Furthermore, I believe from personal experience and close observation of others over the years that economic incentives are very strong motivators for most people; making too high a lifestyle a "right" will lead a significant number of people to stop trying for more; while still getting very angry about it sometimes.

Another argument against putting the government in charge of health care in this country is that I expect they'd do an amazingly horrible and inefficient job of it.

[baka-kit.livejournal.com]

Another argument against putting the government in charge of health care in this country is that I expect they'd do an amazingly horrible and inefficient job of it.

Exactly. At least when I was in the Navy, I could theoretically have gone to a civillian doctor (or dentist) on my own dime. (And believe me, I considered it on more than one occasion, especially after having been bounced around from doctor to dentist to shrink and back to dentist for what turned out to be TMJ, only to be told to "just buy some OTC sleeping pills.) Under a true single-payer system, though, the government system would be the only game in town.

[moony]

That is what (almost) happened to me. I had no dental insurance, and one of my teeth became so infected that the bacteria began creeping into other parts of my head. Migraines, earaches, a perpetual fever - finally, it was when the pain became unbearable and I began losing sight in my right eye, and I couldn't think, that I scraped together the money and went to have someone look at it. Antibiotics helped, but it wasn't until I was finally able to afford to have the tooth cleaned out, packed up and eventually capped that the problem and my health improved (a little).

I have serious, serious problems with the dental industry and healthcare in this country. My health is failing today because I couldn't afford to have problems fixed before they became worse. Even now that I'm in a better financial position than I was, I still cannot afford the major reconstruction I need to be able to eat properly. I likely never will, because even with insurance there is still a spending cap for dentistry, and often that cap is met in ONE VISIT. It's insane.

So, yeah. I share your fury. That poor kid. And I could have been him. Gah.

[moony]

And I am extremely fortunate now to have MassHealth, which is pretty comprehensive and covers an awful lot of stuff. My endoscopy, for example - covered. My prescriptions - covered. My little adventure at the ER for sciatica was covered - even with the ambulance ride. If I didn't have MassHealth, I'd been in deep, deep shit. It's a great system and I wish it were federal instead of merely state.

I have no idea, though, if they have any dental coverage. I hope so. Because I have a wisdom tooth that wants out. :P

[titanic-days.livejournal.com]

It is quite insane. Maybe I'm flattering myself, but I've spent the past five or six years hanging out with a lot of Americans, and I like to think I've come to understand a good deal more about the US than most Brits. But one thing I'll never understand is how you guys managed to go wrong on free, universal healthcare. It's such a fundamental human right that I can't comprehend living without it.

[diatryma.livejournal.com]

One hypothesis I've heard is that the US lags behind the rest of the world in... not socialism, but something along there. Because we hit democracy and a constitution early, and that was enough whatever-it-is-that-isn't-exactly-socialism for a very long time. Europe, since it was more conservative to begin with, took bigger steps because it was step-taking time. The US seemed to think it counted as Whatever because its government was closer to Whatever (and at the time, it did) while the rest of the world made up its Whateverness with social programs.

[jbru.livejournal.com]

Tell me about it. See my post today about our run-in with the lack of dental care for the under-insured.