Some states in our region are turning to dental therapists to serve tribes or low-income patients.
Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada and New Mexico have all passed laws authorizing dental therapists in the last couple of years. This comes as about 60 million Americans live in areas without enough dental providers.
But, experts in some states — and the American Dental Association — say adding another mid-level position isn’t the right way to tackle dental care deserts.
Dental therapists are a relatively new position. They fall somewhere between a hygienist and a dentist. Much like a physician assistant, they provide a limited scope of preventative care.
They can do things like cleanings, fluoride treatments and even simple fillings, according to pediatric dentist and researcher Donald Chi.
“What it allows dental therapists to do is to put out small fires in a community with lots of dental care needs, and so then the dentist can come in and put out the big fires,” said Chi, a professor of oral health sciences at the University of Washington.
Alaska was the first state to authorize dental therapists in 2006 for tribal communities. Chi’s research has shown that Alaska Native adults and children living in areas intensely served by dental therapists were less likely to have teeth removed than people living in areas not served by dental therapists.
But it’s been slow going getting dental therapists established in the Mountain West. There are currently no training programs for dental therapists in the region, and there are skeptics.
The American Dental Association has argued that dentists are the only ones that should be allowed to diagnose oral diseases.
Tanna Nagy, executive director of the Wyoming Dental Association, said she’d rather see resources go toward existing programs for dentists, hygienists and assistants.
“Instead of trying to find faculty for new programs, which are just hard to find already,” she said.
Since the pandemic, Nagy said there’s been a shortage of hygienists. She said, instead of introducing dental therapists, states could incentivize hygienists and dentists to work in rural areas by forgiving student loan debt.
A bill authorizing dental therapists in Wyoming has yet to be introduced.
This story was produced by the Mountain West News Bureau, a collaboration between Wyoming Public Media, Nevada Public Radio, Boise State Public Radio in Idaho, KUNR in Nevada, KUNC in Colorado and KANW in New Mexico, with support from affiliate stations across the region. Funding for the Mountain West News Bureau is provided in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
