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The below list identifies programs for populations
that have difficulties accessing oral health services. These
community-based programs use a variety of educational tools and methods.

SEAL! Michigan School-based Sealant Program
SEAL! Michigan is a school-based sealant
program targeting second and sixth grade children. All services are
provided within qualifying schools using portable dental equipment.
This prevention focused program offers: screenings by a dentist or
dental hygienist who will determine if the student has teeth that
require dental sealants; sealant placement; classroom oral hygiene
education; follow-up checks to determine the retention of dental
sealants; and referrals for students that require further dental
services. A dental sealant is a white liquid that is painted on the
grooves of the back teeth (molars) and hardens to prevent or seal out
decay. Sealants have been proven to reduce tooth decay by more than 70
percent, resulting in lower dental treatment costs and healthier
children. Read
more.
VARNISH! Michigan Program
Tooth decay is the most common (five times more prevalent than asthma)
and preventable chronic disease of childhood. Children as young as
12-18 months can experience early childhood caries (tooth decay). The
Fluoride Varnish Program services Early Head Start and Head Start
children, ages 0-4 and provides dental screenings and fluoride varnish
to these children.
The collection of dental health information through the dental
screenings is used to determine the decay prevalence of Early Head
Start and Head Start children and assist the Michigan Department of
Community Health to promote future dental health programs. The program
also includes: Caries-risk assessment; oral health education for staff,
parents and children; and identification of a dental home. Read
more.
School Fluoride Mouthrinse Program
This prevention program enrolls children
from schools where over 50% of the student population resides in an
area that is not accessible to a fluoridated water supply. The weekly
fluoride rinse helps to rebuild tooth surfaces that are in the
beginning stage of decay. Research documents up to a 35% reduction in
dental caries (decay) for those enrolled. This program is made possible
through the combined efforts and commitments of school principals,
secretaries, teachers, nurses and many parent and grandparent
volunteers. Read
more.
“Smiles Across
Michigan”
Smiles Across Michigan is a statewide
endeavor to improve the oral health of people with developmental
disabilities by assessing oral health needs, developing strategies for
addressing those needs, and providing education and advocacy to
encourage better oral hygiene and motivate accessible and appropriate
care by oral health care professionals. Read more.
Donated Dental Program
Private dental offices located throughout
the state provide donated care. Must be unable to afford dental
treatment and permanently disabled, chronically ill or elderly. Must be
extensive dental work, no routine care or emergency care. Read more.
Developmentally Disabled Dental Program
Provides limited funding to assist the
severe developmentally disabled population to access dental services.
Clients accepted for funding is through referral basis only from client
case managers. Applications are available for case managers by
contacting the Michigan Department of Community Health, Oral Health
Program at oralhealth@michigan.gov.
Public Act 161 Outreach Program
In 2005, Public Act 161
was approved by the 93rd Legislature to provide rules in which a dental
hygienist may provide preventive dental hygiene services to underserved
patients. The law, in particular, regulates the supervision
requirements for a hygienist practicing under PA 161. Under PA 161 a
“dental hygienist may perform dental hygiene services under the supervision
of a dentist as part of a program for dentally
underserved populations in this state conduced by a local, state, or
federal grantee health agency for patients who are not “assigned
by a dentist.” In other words, the patient provided services
by a PA 161 hygienist can not be a “patient of record”
of a dentist. Read
more.
Miles of Smiles Mobile Dental Unit 
Miles of Smiles mobile unit
provides on-site dental services for qualifying low-income, uninsured;
Medicaid insured; and MIChild participating children at schools, Head
StartCenters, Health Department clinics, migrant camps and sites for
dentally underserved children. Miles of Smiles mobile unit
design includes a waiting area, laboratory, dual operatories, sound
insulated rooms, an x-ray machine and wheel chair lift. The unit is
equipped to provide preventative and restorative dental services for
children and adults. A volunteer network of over 100 dentists,
hygienists and students provide assistance on Miles of Smiles.
The initiative is made possible through state grants, local foundations
and county support. Miles of Smiles has been awarded several
commendations for its innovative approach in addressing a major health
problem for qualifying uninsured and Medicaid insured Ottawa County
children. Contact: Ottawa County Health Department
Kalamazoo County’s
Portable Offsite Dental Service
With a partnership between Kalamazoo
County’s Portable Offsite Dental Service and Kalamazoo
Communities In Schools, Kalamazoo Public Schools children will receive
a visit with a dentist at school—sometimes the child’s
first dental visit. The program is designed primarily for children who
have MIChild and Healthy Child insurance. The County Health and
Community Services dental clinic is a primary provider for children
with these insurance carriers but issues such as transportation and
scheduling often pose barriers for children needing care. Having the
service available at school streamlines the process and means many more
children will be seen. Parents without dental insurance can also sign
their children up for the service and pay on a sliding scale based on
income. Contact: Kalamazoo
Communities in Schools
HB 4213
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