1712-13630

This investment supports Oral Health America (OHA) to continue to strengthen the network and infrastructure necessary to ensure inclusion of an oral health benefit in Medicare. Building on successes from the previous three years, moving forward, OHA will focus its work on: 1) further developing the three working groups established in 2015, which include i) Policy and Procedure; ii) Marketing and Communication, and iii) Politics, by extending existing efforts to include additional constituencies with a health equity focus; 2) developing and disseminating new tools to support the movement and campaign focused on Medicare; and 3) providing new ways for state and community-based organizations to become more involved in that movement. Each working group is facilitated by OHA in partnership with subject matter experts. The Policy group will draft and disseminate a collaborative white paper in partnership with the ADA outlining the benefit design for inclusion in Medicare Part B. The Marketing group will expand its Demand Medicare Dental campaign pilot, a campaign focused on engaging consumers in this area. The Politics group has developed the 2018 engagement strategy for key stakeholders on the Hill and partnered to determine the possible markets for the roll out of the pilot. OHA will also release the fourth edition of A State of Decay, a tool for both consumers and advocates alike, during the 2018 National Oral Health Conference. The proposal aligns with the Oral Health 2020 Goal of mandatory inclusion of an adult dental benefit in publicly funded health insurance and the specific target that Medicare includes a comprehensive dental benefit. $650,000 will support the staffing, convening capacity, communications, and marketing costs associated with the proposal's implementation.