Senators Hassan and Marshall Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Expand Affordable Dental Care

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Maggie Hassan (D-NH) and Roger Marshall (R-KS) introduced legislation that would help expand affordable dental care options for Americans in states without a state-run health insurance marketplace, including New Hampshire and Kansas. Currently, the federal health insurance marketplace does not offer stand-alone dental plans without purchase of health insurance on the federal exchange. This leaves residents in New Hampshire and Kansas, as well as in 30 other states without a state-run health insurance marketplace, unable to access affordable dental insurance on the federal health insurance marketplace. This bill would allow consumers to purchase a stand-alone dental plan on the federal health insurance marketplace if they live in one of the 32 states without a state-run health insurance marketplace.

“Allowing people to easily buy affordable dental insurance plans is a commonsense way to lower health care costs for Granite Staters,” said Senator Hassan. “This bipartisan legislation will help more Americans get dental coverage by allowing them to get coverage on the federal health insurance marketplace. I urge my colleagues to support this bill, and I will continue working to lower health care costs.”

“Each piece of the puzzle is important when it comes to your health,” Senator Marshall said. “I am proud to champion this bipartisan legislation that allows Kansans access to stand-alone dental coverage. Routine dental care is critical in preventing serious health conditions like diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and other underlying health issues that can go undetected without proper care. I’m proud to work with my colleague, Senator Hassan, on this bipartisan bill to increase dental insurance options across the United States.”

Senator Hassan is working to lower health care and prescription drug costs for Americans. The most recent government funding bill, which is now law, included three bipartisan measures backed by Senator Hassan to increase access to generic and biosimilar medications. In addition, Senator Hassan led successful bipartisan efforts to help eliminate surprise medical billing, which has prevented at least 9 million surprise bills. Additionally, the Inflation Reduction Act included a number of key provisions that Senator Hassan pushed for to take on Big Pharma and address the skyrocketing cost of prescription drugs, including allowing Medicare to negotiate prescription drug prices – which will bring down the cost of prescription drugs for Medicare beneficiaries and help drive down prices across the board.

This bill is supported by the American Association of Kidney Patients, American Council of Life Insurers, American Society of Nephrology, CareQuest Institute for Oral Health, Delta Dental Insurance Company, Delta Dental Plans Association, Dialysis Patient Citizens, Families USA, Guardian Life, National Association of Dental Plans, National Kidney Foundation, Nonprofit Kidney Care Alliance, Northeast Delta Dental, Principal Financial Group, Sun Life, and United Concordia Companies, Inc.

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