摘要：Objectives . We examined the effect of age, income, and coverage on dental service utilization during 1996. Methods . We used data from the 1996 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey. Results . Edentulous and poorer older adults are less likely to have coverage and less likely to report a dental visit than dentate or wealthier older adults. Conclusions . These analyses help to describe the needs of older adults as they cope with diminishing resources as a consequence of retirement, including persons previously accustomed to accessing oral health services with dental insurance. As they age, adults are retaining a higher mean number of teeth, potentially increasing their dental needs at a time when they may also be experiencing a diminished capacity to access care because of retirement and its attendant loss of income and dental coverage. The oldest age groups are the fastest growing segments of the US adult population. Although the total US population is expected to increase by 42% over the next half century, the number of men and women aged 65 years and older will increase by 126%, those aged 85 and older will increase by 316%, and centenarians will increase by 956%; nearly 10 times the present number. 1 According to the US Administration on Aging, persons aged 65 years or older totaled 35 million in the year 2000, representing 12.4% of the US population. 2 At the same time, a growing proportion of US adults are retaining an increasing number of their teeth throughout their life span. 3 A relative increase in coronal and root caries, periodontal diseases, inadequate or absent prostheses, and preventive needs may result from a greater number of retained teeth among elderly persons. 4 Additionally, because oral and pharyngeal cancers are diagnosed primarily among older Americans, as the population ages, the number of persons benefiting from early diagnosis will also increase. 5 Paradoxically, as the number of people with dental care needs increases, for many aging Americans, the ability to finance this care may actually be decreasing as a result of retirement. Retirement is generally accompanied by a decrease in income and the loss of employer-sponsored dental coverage. 6, 7 Although Medicare is usually available to retirees to cover many, if not most, health care needs, dental care is rarely covered. The purpose of this article is to examine the confluence of an aging population, decreased income, and a decreased availability of dental care coverage using data from the 1996 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS). 8
