I've been saying what we actually need is universal dental care vs universal health care for over 15 years. Giving out universal health care without dental care is like changing the oil in a car but failing to see the tires aren't even on.

I heard horror stories from my mom who worked in a periodontist office (as receptionist) growing up. Really got me to care about oral health early on. Health really starts at the mouth. If you don't have a healthy mouth you'll never have a healthy body.

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Wowfunhappy 7 hours ago | parent | next [-]

I find it completely strange that dental care isn't just considered part of standard healthcare. Like, so my employer's health care plan covers every part of my body except my mouth? Why does my mouth specifically need its own plan?

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atombender 5 hours ago | parent | next [-]

It's a really unfortunate historical accident, especially in the US.

Dentistry evolved relatively late compared to regular medicine, and early oral procedures were mostly tooth extractions, which ended up being predominantly done by barbers, who would also do surgery (!). These procedures were often considered crude and beneath that of a trained doctor, and they were generally performed by self-trained practitioners. There were several attempts in the 1800s to integrate dentistry into mainstream medicine, but they failed, both because the doctors of the time didn't think of dentistry as being a real science, but also because, as dentistry started to legitimize itself, the dentists themselves preferred being separate.

For some reason the same separation also evolved in the U.K., but it's more integrated in other countries. For example, basic dental coverage is part of national healthcare in Germany and Japan. In the U.S., dentists have their own schools and licensing boards and so on, which isn't the case in the rest of the world, where dentistry is usually accepted as a regular branch of medicine and taught at the same universities.

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marttt an hour ago | parent | next [-]

I literally remember one of my elderly relatives pulling out a tooth at home with a thread tied around a door handle as if this was nothing special. DIY all the way! Early 1990s, former Soviet Union rural-or-so area.

As of today, we have moved to a different situation where dental care in that same country is ample, but the price lists are rarely transparent, making many not-so-well-off people avoid going to dentists altogether.

The health insurance system gives something like 60€ yearly to an adult for fixing teeth. Dental care for children up to 19yo is for free, though, which is great.

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wkat4242 2 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

It's not just in the US. In all the EU countries I lived it was also excluded from standard health insurance and government programs except in cases of acute damage.

	▲	bad_haircut72 17 minutes ago \| parent [-]
		Australia, despite having basically universal medicare (otherwise) still considers teeth "luxury bones" in the sense that they're not really necessary to health care (else they would be covered by medicare)

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bluedevil2k 5 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

Nor your eyes for some reason either.

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Wowfunhappy 4 hours ago | parent [-]

Every health care plan I've had (US, New York specifically) has covered optometry, is that unusual?

	▲	lttlrck an hour ago \| parent \| next [-]
		Same for me. It's always an add-on but same provider and policy. This has been true with multiple providers on the east and west coast.
	▲	adastra22 3 hours ago \| parent \| prev [-]
		Yes, in the US at least.

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wormius 6 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

Here's an article about the history of that:

https://www.nbcnews.com/better/health/reason-your-dental-wor...

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jjtheblunt 6 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

Are you thinking universal health care would help, with respect to this article, even if people can't remember to brush their teeth?

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mrtesthah 5 hours ago | parent [-]

Yes, it would help to know that I could see a dentist who would inform me of cavities and gingivitis that I am (or am not, depending on genes), developing as a result of my brushing habits (and through that feedback help refine said habits), rather than merely hoping and doing nothing more for lack of funds.

And many people will require regular teeth cleanings to avoid gum pockets and consequent gingivitis despite their best efforts at brushing and flossing.

There are other situations where tooth infections can move to the brain in a matter of days, risking death if left untreated. Regular checkups reduce that risk considerably.

The other side of your argument would imply that the existence of toothpaste renders the entire field of dentistry inessential.

	▲	jjtheblunt 4 hours ago \| parent [-]
		That's a great point. (I didn't have an argument; I just wondered how the parent comment was thinking.)

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tiahura 4 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

You're proposing dental hygienists that do house calls and brush lazy people's teeth?