UHS Unveils Plan for Dental Care

For the first time, students will be able to get non-emergency dental care through University Health Services (UHS) through a program tailored to student needs, officials said in August.

"This is something that's been considered off and on for quite some time," Janet I. Thompson, manager of UHS insurance programs, said at the time. "There was a need to provide preventive dental care. We were seeing something that if it had been treated sooner wouldn't have been very costly."

David S. Rosenthal '59, the director of UHS, said that the plan is part of UHS's focus on preventative care.

"The major goal is to continue all the preventive health care. This is just one further spectrum in that goal," Rosenthal said. "The program was an evaluation of need. There are significant needs, specifically with international and graduate students."

The new plan is specially designed for students, covering cleanings, fillings, fluoride treatments for people with extensive or frequent cavities and bitewing radiographs that check for cavities between teeth. University affiliates, including research fellows and post-doctoral fellows, will also be eligible for the plan.

"The dental needs of student-age population are much different from those of a general population," said Richard W. Valachovic, chief of the UHS Dental Service. "Most students don't have a lot of needs like a loss of teeth because of periodontal disease, crowns and bridges or dentures. We're able to bring the premium very, very low while covering the kind of treatment they need."

"Eighteen to 30-year-olds need a basic cleaning," Valachovic said. "The new insurance plan will allow two cleanings a year and have the restorative needs [fillings] taken care of."

The year-long dental plan will cost individual students $115.32. Services are covered up to $1,500, though there is a $10 fee for each office visit. There are also single-semester plans.

According to a draft memo, UHS may add other enrollment periods that will be more flexible.