# Effects of Pregnancy and Postpartum Medicaid Dental Benefit Generosity On Use Of Dental Services

> **NIH NIH R03** · UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA · 2023 · $160,301

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
The goal of this study is to examine the effects of the generosity of Medicaid dental benefits for pregnant and
postpartum women on access to preventive, routine and emergent dental care. Our central hypothesis is that
low-income women in states that provide comprehensive dental benefits will have a higher likelihood of
preventive and routine dental care in their pregnancy, and less likely to have emergency department visits for
dental problems. In addition, low-income women in states that provide dental benefits in the year after birth will
have greater utilization of preventive and routine dental care. To evaluate our hypothesis, we will examine the
relationships between state-level generosity of Medicaid dental benefits for pregnant women and access and
utilization of dental care during pregnancy and postpartum. We will use Pregnancy Risk Assessment and
Monitoring Survey (PRAMS) data on dental care use and unmet dental needs from 2012-2019; and recently
released nationally representative T-MSIS Analytic Files (TAF) from 2016-2019 that captures detailed types of
dental utilization among more than 5 million pregnant women in the US. Our specific aims are: Aim 1. Examine
the impact of pregnancy-related Medicaid dental benefits generosity on access to preventive dental care and
unmet dental need during pregnancy using a causal difference-in-differences approach; Aim 2. Measure the
association between pregnancy-related Medicaid dental benefits generosity and routine and emergent dental
care use during pregnancy; Aim 3. Assess the relationships between postpartum Medicaid dental benefit
generosity and routine and emergent dental care use in the year after birth. We will use a combination of
descriptive and quasi-experimental approaches reinforced with several robustness checks. These rigorous and
comprehensive approaches will enable us to make strong, generalizable conclusions about use of dental care
during pregnancy and postpartum and the impacts of generosity and duration of Medicaid dental benefits. Our
study will be the first to examine ED visits for dental problems in pregnancy and the patterns of postpartum
dental care use. The knowledge generated through this research will inform decision-making and
implementation of postpartum extensions of pregnancy-related Medicaid eligibility under the American Rescue
Plan and provide preliminary data for a subsequent R01 that examines the effects of these extensions on
maternal oral health.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10726708
- **Project number:** 1R03DE033075-01
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA
- **Principal Investigator:** Astha Singhal
- **Activity code:** R03 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2023
- **Award amount:** $160,301
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2023-09-01 → 2025-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10726708

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10726708, Effects of Pregnancy and Postpartum Medicaid Dental Benefit Generosity On Use Of Dental Services (1R03DE033075-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10726708. Licensed CC0.

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