Boy Dies From Bad Tooth

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So what happens when kids don't have insurance?

They can die. From a bad tooth. Which abscesses. Spreading infection to the brain.

Horrific summary: the boy's brother had several abscessed teeth, the result of a dentist who "discontinued the treatments . . . after the boy squirmed too much in the chair." (Dude needs to lose his license.) It took a month after the abscesses started to find an oral surgeon who'd see the kid, two months to get a consultation, and another month and a half for the appointment. During which time the family's Medicaid lapsed, so they had to cancel the appointment.

Then Deamonte, in the picture, comes home with a headache, ends up in the hospital, has two brain surgeries, and dies after telling his mother to "make sure you pray before you go to sleep."

Poor children are more than twice as likely to have cavities as their more affluent peers, research shows, but far less likely to get treatment.

Serious and costly medical consequences are "not uncommon," said Norman Tinanoff, chief of pediatric dentistry at the University of Maryland Dental School in Baltimore. For instance, Deamonte's bill for two weeks at Children's alone was expected to be between $200,000 and $250,000. The federal government requires states to provide oral health services to children through Medicaid programs, but the shortage of dentists who will treat indigent patients remains a major barrier to care.
Because Medicaid doesn't pay them enough.

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