Meeting commentary: Santa Fe Group Salon Expanding Oral Healthcare for America's Seniors, September 28-30, 2016

A meeting to explore ways to expand access to oral health care for seniors-possibly by expanding a dental benefit in Medicare-was convened in Arlington, VA, by the Santa Fe Group. Four factors motivated the meeting: PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS: The model Medicare dental benefit presented generated much discussion. There was agreement that any dental benefit must attract participating dentists. Agreement was also reached on the importance of public demonstration projects to further establish cost savings from dental care for patients with comorbid diseases, the need to collaborate with nondental advocacy and policy groups to establish that overall health benefits for seniors are gained by adding oral health care, and the necessity of oral health literacy campaigns working directly at the community level with the general public and others, including educators and the media, as well as with policy makers and providers from all health fields and at all levels of professional training.