Survey responses including data regarding dental visits for both a child and parent in the same household was available for around 6,100 matched pairs. Among parents who reported seeing a dentist during the preceding year, 86 percent of children had also seen a dentist; but only 64 percent of the children of parents with no recent dental visit had seen a dentist during the previous 12 months. In addition, among parents who put off their own dental care because of financial considerations, 27 percent of their children also had dental care deferred. In contrast, only 3 percent of children whose parents had not put off their own care care had their dental care deferred.

"Even when children are covered by medical insurance, it appears that financial barriers are influencing parents' decisions about accessing dental care for their children," says Isong, a clincal fellow at MGHfC. "We're now in the process of looking at the impact of dental insurance - something not addressed by the NHIS - and other enabling resources on the relationship between parents' and children's receipt of dental care."

Source: Massachusetts General Hospital