Oral Health Status and Access Barriers for Underserved Populations Seeking Care in the Safety-Net

This project will assess the oral health status and oral health service utilization patterns among vulnerable and underserved population groups who received care in HRSA-funded health centers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Data from the Health Center Patient Survey collected by HRSA will be analyzed. The survey instrument includes questions related to patients’ demographics, socioeconomic characteristics, access to and utilization of oral health services, oral health symptoms/problems, and the main reasons for delaying or not obtaining needed care. The findings will be compared with the results from an ongoing oral health survey of a nationally representative sample of US adults conducted in collaboration with Workforce Research Center at the Association of American Medical Colleges, Consumer Survey of Health Care Access.