CareQuest Institute for Oral Health is committed to making oral health more accessible, equitable, and integrated. Guided by a mission to improve the oral health of all, the Institute addresses systemic disparities through strategic innovation, partnerships, and evidence-based programs. From advocating in our nation’s capital to on-the-ground training in local health centers, CareQuest Institute ensures underserved communities receive the care they need.
Advancing Oral Health Through Philanthropy and Community-Driven Solutions
Philanthropy is a cornerstone of CareQuest Institute’s work. By funding and elevating local solutions and addressing structural barriers to oral health access, the Institute helps create healthier communities. Every year, dozens of grantees oversee initiatives that improve health and racial equity, strengthen community partnerships, and drive policy change.
Within the Institute’s philanthropic efforts, the Oral Health Progress and Equity Network (OPEN) amplifies community voices in policy advocacy. OPEN enables the Institute to align with community-driven oral health priorities and engage in strategic advocacy.
CareQuest Institute’s policy and advocacy team collaborates with policymakers, advocacy groups, and coalitions to ensure oral health is a priority at the state and national levels. In 2024, that work was displayed in the U.S. Senate, as leaders advocated for the inclusion of oral health in Medicaid adult dental benefits and explored integrated care reimbursement models.
This multi-pronged philanthropic and advocacy approach helps ensure that oral health remains a priority at all levels of government.
Overcoming Challenges in Oral Health Care
Despite progress, challenges persist in achieving equitable oral health access, including:
- Disparities in care access
- Lack of medical-dental integration
- Gaps in dental coverage, particularly within Medicaid and Medicare
- Health IT barriers, including limited data-sharing capabilities in dental software
- Workforce shortages
CareQuest Institute works to strengthen dental benefits, champion medical-dental integration, and promote the implementation of interoperable dental software. The Institute also offers education through online courses and webinars to empower providers in delivering patient-centered and equitable care.
Key Reports and Successful Initiatives
CareQuest Institute leverages data to drive transformative change. Through research, surveys, and reports, the Institute uncovers trends and informs policy decisions. Some key initiatives include:
- State of Oral Health Equity in America Report: Provides an annual national analysis of oral health experiences and behaviors to influence policy and community empowerment.
- Oral Health Progress and Equity Network (OPEN): Explore the Equity Network Toolkit and theElection Engagement Toolkit for resources on advocacy and community engagement.
- A Simple Alternative Payment Model (APM) for Diabetes and Periodontal Care: Highlights how integrating periodontal treatment into diabetes management improves outcomes and reduces costs.
Diving Deeper: Bridging Gaps with the MORE Care® Program
Focused on bridging the gap between medical and dental practices, MORE Care® (Medical Oral Expanded Care) is a program that integrates oral health into comprehensive, person-centered care. From 2022 to 2024, the program was implemented in Ohio, building sustainable networks that improved referral processes and access to oral health services.
Despite challenges like the lack of integrated electronic records necessitating manual referral tracking, the program successfully referred 407 patients from primary care to dental practices, achieving 100% growth in referrals over the baseline. This success reflects the importance of referral relationships yet underscores the need for streamlined, interoperable systems to support medical-dental collaboration and improve care access.
Community Oral Health Transformation (COrHT), another program of the CareQuest Institute, recently helped grow integrated care models across 13 safety net dental clinics across North Carolina. The program operated in partnership with the NC Oral Health Collaborative and BlueCross BlueShield of NC Foundation.
While COrHT NC participants collected and utilized oral health data within their value-based care models, the lack of standardized data exchange limited full integration with medical systems.
CareQuest Institute and their partners encounter the critical need for dental data standardization frequently. Civitas Networks for Health and its members play a vital role in advocating for improved health information sharing and advancing policies that support provision of comprehensive care, including oral health.
Building Strategic Partnerships for Systemic Change
Collaboration is integral to CareQuest Institute’s focus on driving oral health transformation. By partnering with organizations like Civitas, HL7, the Workgroup for Electronic Data Interchange (WEDI), and other mission-aligned entities, the Institute enhances data exchange standards and expands oral health data analytics, improving interoperability and care coordination.
A key example is CareQuest Institute’s participation in HL7’s data exchange forum, which promotes standardized integration between health care and dental systems.
By partnering with HL7, CareQuest Institute is advancing efforts to align oral health data with medical standards, ensuring that future initiatives in value-based care fully integrate oral health into comprehensive patient care.
Joining Civitas Networks for Health: A Strategic Partnership for Broader Impact
Three years ago, CareQuest Institute joined Civitas Networks for Health to further elevate our work in oral health integration with the national platform for advancing health information exchange, interoperability, and data governance. We appreciate the connection to a robust network of health data organizations and regional health information exchanges, allowing CareQuest Institute to advocate for integrated health data systems that include oral health.
“This partnership enables CareQuest to engage in policy discussions at a national level, advocating for inclusive data standards, and collaborating on innovative solutions to expand oral health data analytics,” said Andrea Clark at CareQuest Institute for Oral Health.
This collaboration strengthens CareQuest Institute’s efforts to:
- Expand technology-driven solutions for integrated care
- Improve health care workflows through innovative systems
- Promote health IT education to enhance data interoperability
- Advance value-based care models
CareQuest Institute’s Future Vision and Goals
Success for CareQuest Institute means helping to create a health care system where oral health is a fundamental right, not a privilege. This vision is measured by better access to care within communities and improved oral health outcomes.
To learn more about their wide array of tools, reports, and resources, check out the CareQuest Resource Library.
