Introduction: In 2009, Vermont spent $2.7 million treating Early Childhood Caries (ECC) in children ages 0-5, a group whose oral health status is strongly associated with that of their mothers. In 2012, Vermont lifted the Medicaid dental care cap for women during pregnancy and for 60 days postpartum, but data indicates that the majority of maternity care providers are unaware of this change and are not using guidelines published by the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) to evaluate oral health during pregnancy.

Objective: The Oral Health Intervention (OHI) is designed to improve prenatal dental referral rates for pregnant women on Medicaid.

Methods: Obstetricians at the UVM Medical Center received a didactic session providing oral health education, guidelines, and local resources. Our Oral Health Referral Protocol (OHRP) provided patients with treatment authorization letters, dental kits with educational pamphlets, and opportunities to schedule dental appointments. Pre-and post-intervention surveys assessed physician’s attitude and knowledge. OHRP feasibility was assessed by total treatment authorization letters received and appointments scheduled at two local dental clinics.

Results: 13/47 patients receiving OHRP counseling requested treatment authorization letters, and 2 scheduled dental appointments. No surveyed physicians were aware of the Medicaid cap removal and none were using guidelines to assess oral health before the didactic session, compared to 100% and 29%, respectively, post-didactic.

Conclusions: Provider education increases awareness of important Medicaid payment policies. The OHI is a feasible model to improve prenatal dental referral rates. Future research is needed to reduce barriers to scheduling and keeping appointments.