Recent Findings in Managed Care Described by Researchers from University of Washington (Improving Dental Care Access for Medicaid-enrolled Adults Through a Dental Clinic Co-located Within a Rural Health Center: a Mixed-methods Study): Managed Care

2026 AUG 13 (NewsRx) -- By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Insurance Daily News -- Investigators publish new report on Managed Care. According to news originating from Seattle, Washington, by NewsRx correspondents, research stated, “Rural Medicaid enrollees face barriers to dental care. We evaluated outcomes of a dental clinic co-located within a health center in Jefferson County, a rural Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA) in Washington state.”

Funders for this research include HRSA Grant Award, NIH National Cancer Institute (NCI).

Our news journalists obtained a quote from the research from the University of Washington, “In this mixed-methods study, we conducted 33 interviews and inductively coded the data. Using Medicaid data for adult enrollees, linear regression estimated dental use changes after clinic establishment by location of care (Jefferson County vs. elsewhere). We identified three domains. The clinic 1) provided affordable, accessible care meeting community needs; 2) faced challenges including extensive waitlists and staff shortages; 3) could address challenges by expanding clinic facilities and services offered. Adult Medicaid enrollees’ dental care use increased 8.3% in Jefferson County (95% CI 4.1, 12.5) and declined 3.5% elsewhere (95% CI-6.3, -0.65) after the clinic was established.”

According to the news editors, the research concluded: “A co-located dental clinic addressed barriers to care for rural Medicaid enrollees, yet challenges persist.”

This research has been peer-reviewed.

For more information on this research see: Improving Dental Care Access for Medicaid-enrolled Adults Through a Dental Clinic Co-located Within a Rural Health Center: a Mixed-methods Study. Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved, 2026;37(3):98-121. Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved can be contacted at: Johns Hopkins Univ Press, Journals Publishing Division, 2715 North Charles St, Baltimore, MD 21218-4363, USA.

The news correspondents report that additional information may be obtained from Donald L. Chi., University of Washington, School of Dentistry, Dept. of Oral Health Sciences, Seattle, WA, United States. Additional authors for this research include Courtney M. Hill, Thinh T. Do, Mary Ellen Shands, Deeksha Nemawarkar and Jane K. Soper.

The direct object identifier (DOI) for that additional information is: https://doi.org/10.1353/hpu.2026.a994062. This DOI is a link to an online electronic document that is either free or for purchase, and can be your direct source for a journal article and its citation.

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