AN ACT to increase the medicaid reimbursement rate for dental services.

Whereas, access to oral health care is a critical component of overall health; and

Whereas, thousands of North Carolinians, especially those insured through Medicaid, face significant barriers to dental care; and

Whereas, a major contributing factor to the barriers to dental care is the low participation rate among dental providers in the Medicaid program due to the State's insufficient Medicaid reimbursement rates for dental services; and

Whereas, North Carolina's dental Medicaid reimbursement rates have not seen a meaningful increase since 2008; and

Whereas, as a result, many dental providers opt out of the Medicaid program or stop accepting Medicaid patients, which results in patients utilizing hospital emergency departments for urgent dental needs; and

Whereas, raising the Medicaid reimbursement rates for dental services would incentivize dental providers currently participating in the Medicaid program, encourage more dental providers to enroll in the Medicaid program, expand access to preventive care, and reduce costly emergency department visits; and

Whereas, an adequate network of Medicaid dental providers throughout the State is a requirement of the Medicaid program; and

Whereas, while safety net dental providers provide the majority of oral health services under the NC Medicaid program, they do not have the capacity, geographic distribution, or financial ability to provide all of the necessary care; and

Whereas, a robust contingent of private practicing dentists must participate in the Medicaid program to ensure an adequate network of providers to serve the NC Medicaid beneficiaries; Now, therefore,

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.  There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Health Benefits (DHB), the sum of eighty million dollars ($80,000,000) in recurring funds and associated receipts beginning in the 2026‑2027 fiscal year to be used to increase the Medicaid rate paid for dental services.

SECTION 2.  This act is effective July 1, 2026.