Dental-Related Emergency Department Visits Up
An increasing number of U.S. residents are delaying dental care and ending up in the emergency department for dental issues, according to recent American Dental Association analysis of federal data. ADA found that the number of U.S. residents who went to the ED for long-delayed dental care increased from about 1.1 million in 2000 to about 2.2 million in 2012. An ED visit costs about three times as much as a routine dental visit. Such visits cost the U.S. health care system $1.6 billion annually.
- "ER Visits for Dental Problems on the Rise" (Ungar, Louisville Courier-Journal/USA Today, 6/29).