States by Medicaid Dental Coverage | PlainDentalCost
PlainDentalCost ranks US states by the number of dental procedures (CDT D-codes) recorded in each state's adult Medicaid dental fee-schedule snapshot. Ranking is rendered server-side from the state_summary table; it is not a live benefits determination.
Research period:
Research question
Across the US states tracked by PlainDentalCost's Medicaid dental coverage database, which states cover the broadest set of CDT-coded dental procedures under their adult Medicaid programs, and how do those breadth rankings relate to the average state Medicaid dental fee level?
Methodology
This ranking reflects the recorded database snapshot cited below. It is not a live coverage, reimbursement, or eligibility determination.
Coverage and exclusions: the ranking excludes rows without a recorded procedure count or Medicaid fee. State schedules and benefit rules can change after the snapshot, so confirm current coverage, limits, and authorization requirements with the state program.
Data provenance: the table is rendered server-side from the state_summary database table. A value can change only after the source material is revalidated and a new database snapshot is deployed.
Comparability: this page compares the rows within one database snapshot. It does not infer benefit changes across source editions.
Corrections are checked against the cited primary source before the database is changed.
Use the citation and the relevant state program to independently verify any figure before making a benefits or treatment decision.
See the methodology page for the complete ETL pipeline, source vintage, and column lineage.
Top 10 US States by Medicaid Dental Procedure Coverage Breadth
Database snapshot: recorded state-summary rows
The ranked top 10
Every row below reflects this 10-record database snapshot. Check the source program for current benefit decisions.
| # | State | Procedures covered (CDT D-codes) | Adult Medicaid coverage tier | Avg Medicaid fee ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alaska | 58 | extensive | 451.62 |
| 2 | California | 58 | extensive | 328.96 |
| 3 | Connecticut | 58 | extensive | 367.98 |
| 4 | District of Columbia | 58 | extensive | 404.23 |
| 5 | Iowa | 58 | extensive | 301.08 |
| 6 | Illinois | 58 | extensive | 239.75 |
| 7 | Massachusetts | 58 | extensive | 356.83 |
| 8 | Maryland | 58 | extensive | 326.17 |
| 9 | Michigan | 58 | extensive | 262.05 |
| 10 | Minnesota | 58 | extensive | 395.86 |
Source: ADA HPI Medicaid Reimbursement Compendium and MACPAC adult dental coverage tiers. State-dollar values are modeled estimates in PlainDentalCost's recorded snapshot, not live fee schedules or benefit information.
Findings
Top entity in the ranking
The top-ranked record in this dataset is Alaska, with a value of 58 on the Procedures covered (CDT D-codes) column. The full top-10 set is rendered in the table above. Every value derives from the underlying state_summary table; no number is hardcoded into this page. The ranking changes only when a new database snapshot is deployed.
Distribution shape
The gap between the top-ranked record (58) and the 10th-ranked record (58) characterizes how concentrated the top of the distribution is. Where the top value is many multiples of the median value of the visible set, the population is highly concentrated, a small number of entities accumulate the bulk of the measured quantity. Where the top and bottom of the visible set are close together, the distribution is relatively flat across the top end. The full distribution beyond this top-10 cut is summarized in the aggregate context section below and explored in the linked entity profiles.
Aggregate context
Across all tracked jurisdictions, the snapshot's summary figures put this top-10 ranking in context: the number of qualifying records, the total recorded count, and the average per-record value. The methodology page explains which rows are included and why records without an estimate are excluded. These summaries and the ranking use the same documented snapshot.
Source provenance
This ranking uses the ADA HPI Medicaid Reimbursement Compendium and MACPAC adult dental coverage tiers. State-dollar figures are modeled estimates, not live transcriptions of state fee schedules, and the recorded tier is not a current eligibility or benefit determination. The methodology page documents the source links, snapshot date, and how the figures are prepared.
Why this ranking matters
Rankings like this one let a reader scan a population quickly and identify outliers, concentrations, and patterns that warrant deeper investigation. The detail pages linked from each entity in the table above give the full per-entity context: time-series history where available, related metrics from adjacent tables, and links onward to the underlying source records. The methodology page explains how an entity earns inclusion in the dataset and how the ranking column is computed at the source.
What this analysis cannot tell us
Procedure-coverage counts derive from modeled Medicaid estimates and MACPAC coverage flags as captured in the PlainDentalCost database snapshot. State Medicaid adult dental benefits change by legislative session and administrative rulemaking, so the coverage-breadth rankings shown here reflect the schedule as of the database vintage rather than live coverage policy. Coverage tier classifications summarize MACPAC adult-dental scope (emergency / limited / extensive / none); the methodology page documents the tier thresholds. Procedure-coverage breadth does not measure care access, provider participation rates, member out-of-pocket exposure, prior-authorization frequency, or annual benefit caps, a state with high coverage breadth on its fee schedule can still have limited practical access if provider participation is low or annual benefit caps are tight. Average Medicaid fee figures sum across the covered CDT D-codes only and reflect each state's listed fee, not negotiated fees, reimbursement-after-adjustment, or actual paid amounts. Coverage is reported for adult dental benefits; pediatric Medicaid dental benefits are federally mandated under EPSDT and are scoped separately. This data does not constitute clinical advice, treatment recommendation, or coverage guarantee for any individual procedure or member.
Secondary cut from the same source
Top 10 states by average Medicaid dental fee across covered CDT-coded procedures
Sources
- ADA Health Policy Institute, Medicaid Reimbursement Compendium - https://www.ada.org/resources/research/health-policy-institute
- American Dental Association, Code on Dental Procedures and Nomenclature (CDT) - https://www.ada.org/publications/cdt