Resource Center

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has taken an important step toward improving oral health outcomes that are linked to overall health. On November 3, CMS announced that Medicare will begin making payment in 2023 for dental services necessary to identify and eliminate oral and dental infections prior to, and contemporaneously with, organ transplant, cardiac valve replacement, and valvuloplasty procedures. 

For services to be covered by Medicare, they must be performed by a Medicare participating provider. As part of the same final rule, the agency is establishing an annual process “to review public input on other circumstances when payment for dental services may be allowed.” 

The OHNEP team contributed comments to the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule in September 2022 advocating for the importance of oral health care and dental coverage in promoting positive overall health outcomes for many health conditions. We are thrilled to see CMS make this important step toward health equity and oral and overall health care for Medicare beneficiaries. You can read our comments at the OHNEP website, and check out the Santa Fe Group comments and their Statement on Medicare Coverage by the Consortium for Medically Necessary Oral Health Coverage Issues.