Healthy Kids Dental

Healthy Kids Dental (HKD) was a 12-month demonstration project contracted by the state of Michigan with the commercial Delta Dental Plan of Michigan. Children (0 to 20 years old) who were enrolled in Medicaid were enrolled in the Healthy Kids Dental plan. The project was started on May 1, 2000 and ended May 2001. The project aimed to address the issue of low participation rate of dentists in the Medicaid program by providing competitive reimbursement rates and reducing administrative processing.

Under the contract, the state paid per member per month for the children enrolled in the HKD plan. The project included children enrolled in Medicaid from 37 Michigan counties.

The project goal of Healthy Kids Dental was to increase utilization of dental care by Medicaid enrollees through a contract with a commercial dental plan.

The evaluation of the project showed that more children received dental care under the Healthy Kids Dental plan than the traditional fee-for-service Medicaid coverage. More dentists also participated in the HKD plan. In 18 out of 37 counties, the number of dentists participating in HKD increased 300% compared to those participating in traditional Medicaid. Higher numbers of children under HKD received care within their county of residence, and they reported visiting dentists for regular check-ups more often than children under traditional Medicaid.