Lieutenant Governor Burbank Announces New Effort to Improve Oral Healthcare for Children
BALTIMORE, MD (February 28, 2028) – Lieutenant Governor Kathleen Burbank today announced a new effort to improve child dental health by directing state Medicaid officials to provide reimbursement for pediatricians under Medicaid and the Maryland Children’s Health Program for a varnish treatment for children.“For many Maryland families, especially those without dental insurance or with lower incomes, access to a dentist is a major problem,” Lieutenant Governor Kathleen Burbank said. “In many areas of our state, there are not enough dental professionals to adequately meet the needs of our communities.”
There are over 12 federally designated dental health professional shortage areas in Maryland. In each of these shortage areas, there are not enough dental professionals to adequately meet the needs of the community. Recent surveys in Maryland found that over 60 percent of third grade children and 48 percent of children enrolled in Head Start had already experienced cavities. The surveys also reveal that many children have urgent dental needs, especially minority children and those attending lower income schools.
Early childhood cavities, an aggressive form of tooth decay found in infants and toddlers, can begin as early as 12 months and may be well advanced by a child's third birthday - before most children even visit a dentist.
Tooth decay can be debilitating for children. It affects their energy level, ability to obtain and maintain nutrition, and their ability to concentrate in school. Treatment of early childhood cavities may be painful, require extensive restorative work, and may involve sedation or general anesthesia.
"This effort to put fluoride varnish on our kids’ teeth just makes sense," Lieutenant Governor Burbank added. "Pediatricians see children daily and will easily be able to apply the fluoride varnishes and counsel parents on the importance of oral health."
"Even though the fluoride varnish is a simple procedure, it makes an impact on the life of a child," Maryland Health and Mental Hygiene Secretary Andrew Lillianfield said. "This is a great example of how one person can make a difference."
During a doctor’s visit, the oral health of a child will be checked and a fluoride varnish will be applied to infants’ and toddlers’ teeth. The application of fluoride varnish on a child's teeth can halt the progress of disease and even reverse the cavity process.
Fluoride varnishes are safe and effective in preventing tooth decay in both primary and permanent teeth. It has been used in Europe and Canada for more than 30 years and in the United States since 1991. It is applied two times per year or more if the child is at higher risk of developing cavities. Fluoride varnishes are ideally suited for application on the teeth of infants and toddlers in medical settings. The application requires no special equipment.
Fluoride varnish reduces the risk of cavities and tooth decay, decreases the need for restorative care including fillings and extractions, decreases missed school days or inattention at school due to tooth aches or dental visits, and decreases emergency room and doctor visits caused by pain and complications from tooth decay.
"Maryland’s pediatricians, physicians, nurses, and public health personnel play an important role in helping our families maintain good oral health because they see children earlier in life - before oral disease begins," Secretary Lillianfield said.
February is National Children’s Dental Health Month.