MM!MD Stories
How the System Turned Its Back on Her Child:
My son, Malik, and I live in Baltimore. When Malik was born in 2003, I was working for a youth development program. Our health insurance coverage was good. But we lost our dental and vision coverage when my project was contracted out to another agency.
As a single parent, given all my other expenses, including childcare, I couldn’t afford to pay money out of pocket to secure dental and vision care. I wasn’t too worried about my son’s health, though. I knew I had done everything right. I breast-fed him; we eat organic foods, no sugary drinks, etc., so I was sure he’d be OK other than needing his general well-baby check-ups.
When my son was one, I paid out of pocket to take him for his first dental visit. It was a surprise to learn he had some serious dental problems. He was born anemic; maybe that affected his calcium too. I knew dental care was important for young children so I made sure I kept up with what was needed.
When I decided to go to graduate school, I was not able to keep my employer-sponsored health coverage. I knew that the Maryland Children’s Health Program (MCHP) was a good program so I felt assured my son would still get the care he needed. Well, yes – but, I’ve had to work hard to get him what he needed because it turned out to be very hard to get access to providers. I encountered a lot of disrespect from providers. Sometimes their attitude was “you’re getting this for free, so just be quiet.” I didn’t accept it. I made it clear that I was a responsible parent and refused to be stereotyped based on what kind of health insurance we used.
The dentists seemed OK as long as they were just doing cleanings but when more involved work was needed they sent me elsewhere. We went to four different dental offices but my son never really got the treatment he needed. I felt like they just wanted to milk the system. At one point, after a visit for a routine cleaning, one of Malik’s teeth became irritated and developed an abscess. I called the U. of Md. Dental School to try to get him an appointment, but they said we would have to wait two or more months. Instead, I took him to a private dentist and paid for it myself - nearly $500 for the cost of the x-ray, anesthesia, extraction, etc.
They need to give dentists more incentive to participate in Medicaid and MCHP so children can get the care they need, when they need it!
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