In 2022, more than a quarter of American adults cited financial reasons for delaying or going without medical, prescription, or dental care according to the Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker.

The ADA estimates that 2 million emergency room visits each year are to treat dental pain. ASDA supports emergency room referral programs that would refer many of these patients to local dentists. Not only do these programs reduce demand for already overcrowded emergency rooms, they also save an estimated $1.7 billion in the American healthcare system. Read more from the ADA.

Many dental students are active in supporting initiatives that reduce financial barriers to receiving oral healthcare, such as Give Kids a Smile, Mission of Mercy, and Give Veterans a Smile.

What has ASDA Done?

• In May 2025, ASDA signed onto a coalition letter supporting the Ensuring Lasting Smiles Act. ELSA would require insurance plans to provide more comprehensive coverage of various maxillofacial anomalies. Read more in the June 2025 Advocacy Brief.
• ASDA members have lobbied for the Ensuring Lasting Smiles Act at Lobby Day 2019, 2021, and 2022. Over the years, ASDA members have sent nearly 1,000 letters to members of Congress in support of this bill. Due in part to ASDA's efforts, on April 4, 2022, this bill passed in the House of Representatives. Despite urging from ASDA and other organizations in October 2022, Senate leaders did not take up ELSA before Congress’ term concluded on January 3, 2023. Therefore, ELSA was not signed into law.

Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs) describe areas in the United States with limited access to healthcare due to a shortage of healthcare professionals. As of December 31, 2024, KFF identified over 59.5 million individuals living in over 7,067 HPSAs.

ASDA’s identified solutions to HPSAs include:

• Student loan forgiveness and scholarship programs for individuals working in rural or underserved areas
• Teledentistry when direct examination is not feasible, including synchronous video between patients and providers, securely transmitting health information, and remote patient monitoring

What Has ASDA Done?

• Read more about how ASDA advocates for student debt relief for dentists serving rural and underserved populations.

According to the CareQuest Institute for Oral Health, 68.5 million adults in the U.S. don’t have dental insurance. Adults and children with dental insurance are more likely to visit the dentist and seek preventative oral health care.

In 2021, 61.4% of adults aged 19-64 held private dental insurance plans. 15.7% received public dental insurance, including Medicaid, and 22.8% were uninsured in the same age group.

What Has ASDA Done?

• 53% of children held private dental insurance plans and 38% received dental benefits from public programs like CHIP and Medicaid. Only 9% of children did not have dental insurance.

For more information about ASDA’s advocacy work surrounding expanded access to Medicaid, visit this webpage.

ASDA encourages a multidisciplinary approach to student education about oral health literacy and using communication techniques to improve patient oral health literacy.

By educating patients on oral health literacy, individuals become better stewards of their own dental needs. The ADA suggests that dentists can improve oral health literacy with their patients by using simple explanations and ensuring comprehension using the “teach-back” method.

What has ASDA Done?

• ASDA has signed onto several coalition letters urging the 117th Congress to consider the Oral Health Literacy and Awareness Act, which would require the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) to conduct a public education campaign to increase oral health literacy and awareness.

February 2020 | October 2021 | April 2022 | October 2022