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Sorenson, IHC Join in Donation for Dental Care

Posted on: Thursday, 15 June 2006, 21:00 CDT

By Matt Canham, The Salt Lake Tribune

Jun. 15--Utah's richest man and the state's largest medical provider have teamed to do what the state Legislature refused to -- provide dental care for 40,000 of the neediest residents.

Political leaders joined the donors Wednesday to announce the one-year Medicaid dental bailout, which will allow poor, disabled and elderly Utahns to get free dentures, root canals and other needed dental work.

"The mission is accomplished," said Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. "We have risen to the occasion."

James L. Sorenson, who has made billions mostly through creating medical devices, pledged $1 million last week but only if Huntsman could find another $1 million to fully restore the dental benefit for another year.

On Wednesday, Intermountain Health Care offered the needed cash.

In between, the state Health Department set up a fund and donations poured in from individuals and companies. The governor's office did not release a total of those donations Wednesday because some promised donations have not yet been received.

The $2 million in contributions will be matched by $4.8 million from the federal government, securing the politically sensitive benefit which was set to expire at the end of the month.

Senate President John Valentine and House Speaker Greg Curtis were on hand to thank Sorenson and IHC, and to blame the federal government for cutting Medicaid funding.

Congress has trimmed Medicaid funding for states nationwide in an attempt to rein in the national debt. Utah saw a $10 million cut last year and a $11 million reduction this year, leaving the Legislature with only two options -- either use state money to fill the gaps or cut programs.

Medicaid vision and dental benefits were some of the first to go, starting an annual campaign by low-income advocates to restore the funding. In years past, lawmakers found available cash to pay for vision and dental benefits one year at a time.

But this year, lawmakers decided to cut the funding, leaving 65,000 adults without dental coverage starting July 1. Lawmakers did spend millions to restore other basic benefits but refused to fund it all out of a belief that Medicaid costs are spiraling out of control.

Huntsman made a second attempt to secure at least emergency dental funding, during a special session in May. Legislators refused to even discuss it, though Huntsman claimed he found existing Health Department funding that could be transferred to cover Medicaid dental.

The Legislature has created a Medicaid task force that began meeting on Wednesday. It plans to wade through the varied programs and the need for state funding.

But lawmakers' refusal to cover what the federal government calls an "optional" benefit led to a public outcry.

Sorenson said newspaper coverage of the event spurred him into action.

"There was a need," he said.

Sorenson called Huntsman to make his pledge, asking that it remain anonymous until matching funds were raised.

Sorenson is the richest man in Utah, with a net worth of about $3.9 billion, according to Forbes magazine. He is one of the state's biggest philanthropists and regularly ducks attention. There was an exception: he famously withdrew a $15 million donation to the University of Utah medical school in 1989 after then-U. President Chase Peterson rescinded an offer to name the medical school and hospital in his honor.

Bill Nelson, IHC president, said funding dental work for the poor fit "our charitable mission."

Senate Republicans pledged $10,000 before IHC came forward. Valentine said they would make good on the donation if it is needed, "but it appears today with the announcement that we have the funding to adequately address the issue."

Pamela Atkinson, who Huntsman asked to lead the effort, stressed that Utah will not regularly use such private donations to fund a public program.

"It is very clear that this is a one-time effort only," she said. But she added, "We are grateful for the outpouring of compassion."

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Copyright (c) 2006, The Salt Lake Tribune

Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.

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Source: The Salt Lake Tribune

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