G-2003-16252

This grant is to support the Pennsylvania Coalition for Oral Health (PCOH) to continue to serve as a leader and convener of oral health advocacy in the commonwealth by promoting better access to care, supporting policy change, and engaging diverse partners. This investment will enable PCOH to engage, along with other partners, in policy advocacy around expanding adult dental benefits in their Medicaid program by holding regular workgroup meetings, building relationships with policymakers, and hosting an oral health summit. Additional work will help develop and spread teledentistry models in Pennsylvania, expand access to oral health care for postpartum women, address workforce needs especially in the aftermath of COVID-19, and lead efforts around the next state oral health plan. This work supports improvement across care, community, policy, and financial systems, and will help achieve the Oral Health 2020 goal of ensuring the inclusion of an extensive adult benefit in publicly funded health coverage. $85,000.00 will support staff time, communications efforts, operations, travel and meeting expenses, and mini-grants to partners.