1703-13196

This investment provides continued support Families USA in its efforts to raise awareness among state and federal policymakers, the media, and the general public about the urgent need to achieve and protect oral health coverage in the states and defend the core Medicaid and Medicare programs. Specifically, Families USA will maintain and expand the infrastructure to support and sustain the Oral Health Coverage for All Campaign; provide customized technical assistance to key national and state-based partners related to oral health issues, broader health care policy, and advocacy strategies to achieve Campaign goals; host a second oral health pre-conference session at its 2018 national meeting; and increase awareness among policymakers, opinion leaders, and the public about the need for expanded oral health coverage. Families USA launched the Oral Health for All Campaign in 2016. Through this process, a strong hub with Oral Health America, the Children's Dental Health Project, and many others was formed. Families USA provides support to individual states and will continue to develop tools and resources for the broader OH2020 Network. $636,498 will be used to support personnel time associated with partner outreach, coalition-building, and strategy formation; hosting a pre-conference meeting at the 2018 Conference focused on oral health; costs associated with network webinars, travel, and other administrative items associated with the project's implementation. The proposal primarily aligns with the Oral Health 2020 goal of including an adult dental benefit in publicly funded health coverage and the target that at least 30 states have an extensive Medicaid adult dental benefit.