NYU Symposium Looks at Disability and Health Policy as Means of Improving Oral Healthcare for People with Disabilities

NYU Symposium Looks at Disability and Health Policy as Means of Improving Oral Healthcare for People with Disabilities

NYU COLLEGE OF DENTISTRY hosted its third AHEAD symposium—”Achieving Health Equity through Access for All with Disabilities”—on Nov. 13. The virtual event brought together policymakers, experts and advocates to discuss improving oral healthcare for people with disabilities.

Dental care is the most unmet healthcare need for people with disabilities. Patients and their families often face barriers to seeing a dentist, including insurance coverage and reimbursement policies, a lack of providers with disability-focused training and dental offices that cannot accommodate people with certain disabilities. To address this unmet need, NYU Dentistry established the Oral Health Center for People with Disabilities—a specialized, state-of-the-art clinic staffed by a collaborative, compassionate multidisciplinary team—five years ago. In addition to all NYU dental students learning to care for people with disabilities, the college leads several training and continuing education programs on oral health and disability for dentists, dental hygienists and other health professionals.

The event’s speakers included:

• Jim Brett, chair of the President’s Committee for People with Intellectual Disabilities, which advises the president and secretary of health and human services about issues related to people with disabilities, and president and CEO of the New England Council.

• Congressman Seth Moulton (D-MA 6th District), sponsor of the Healthcare Extension and Accessibility for Developmentally Disabled and Underserved Population (HEADs UP) Act, a bipartisan bill that aims to expand and improve healthcare services for people with disabilities.

• Kim Hill Ridley, New York State’s first-ever chief disability officer.

• Kate Swenson, parent advocate and author of “Finding Cooper’s Voice.”

Additional panel discussions addressed the importance of integrated care to ensure optimal health outcomes for individuals with special healthcare needs, in addition to highlighting alternative models of support services.