Dental Group Wants to Raise Soda Pop Tax for Better Dental Programs
by Dwayne T. Ervin
The Illinois State DentalSociety wants to raise the sodapop tax to 5 percent for Illinoisresidents who do not have dentalinsurance.
Raising the tax from 3 percentto 5 percent would generate$46.6 million annually andtranslates to $91 million inMedicaid spending.
According to Michelle Arnoldof Morreale Public AffairsGroup, this would affect consumersby improving oral healthcare by bridging the access tocare gap. This will be achievedby increasing the Medicaidreimbursement rates, openingdental clinics and a dental studentloan incentive, she said.
House Bill 388 creates theDental Provider Fund where theproceeds from the soda pop taxwill be deposited for oral healthcare projects. The current statefunding for dental care inIllinois is 46 percent.
Chicago is the only area inIllinois that charges a soda poptax and is one of the underservedparts of Illinois in dentalcare.
According to a Bridge ForHealthy Smiles fact sheet, sodapop is harmful to teeth on twolevels. First, the sugar in thesoda feeds the plaque that accumulateson teeth. Bacteria feedoff of the sugars and convertsinto acid which causes a breakdownin the enamel. Secondly,soda pop is very high in acid onits own. Citric acid is the mostdetrimental to enamel.
The fact sheet also states thatthe typical American drinks 53gallons of soda pop each year.The consumption of soft drinkshas increased 500% in the last50 years. The erosive potentialof colas is 10 times that of fruitjuices in just the first three minutesof drinking.
Acids and acidic sugar byproductsin soft drinks soften toothenamel, contributing to the formationof cavities, according tothe fact sheet.
The Bridge to Healthy Smilescoalition, a group of dentists,oral health care advocates andhealth organizations, tout thelatest proposal as a creative waytaxpayers can receive the greatestreturn on their investment.
The Bridge to Healthy Smilescampaign is led by a diversecoalition of oral health careadvocates and communitygroups committed to bridgingthe access to care gap for dentalcoverage in Illinois.
At a time when we are forcedto make tough decisions on howto balance our states recordbudget deficit, Illinoisans arelosing their jobs and relying ongovernment sponsored dentalcare as their own safety net fortreatment, said StateRepresentative David Miller (DDolton)in a released statement.
Illinois has among the lowestfunding rates in the nation formany dental procedures. Overthe last three decades, whilefinding for government healthcare programs has decreased,enrollment has risen, forcingcritically needed dental clinicsto close their doors. Illinois hasjust one dental clinic for every8,400 children in governmentinsuredprograms.
Thousands of patients insuredthrough government health careprograms like KidCare andAllKids, are forced to waitmonths to see a dentist or gowithout care altogether.
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