More than 146,000 Florida residents visited emergency departments for preventable dental conditions in 2024, according to data provided by the Well Florida Health Planning Council and Floridians for Dental Access.
Six notes:
1. The number of Florida residents who visited an emergency department for dental conditions in 2024 represents a 25% increase from 2021. Over 4,000 of those patients were hospitalized.
2. The emergency department visits in 2024 resulted in nearly $1 billion in total emergency and hospital charges, a 77% increase from 2021.
3. Nearly six million Florida residents live in dental health professional shortage areas.
4. Florida’s dental workforce shortages are expected to get worse as the state’s population grows.
5. Dental leaders have been lobbying for the state to authorize the practice of dental therapists to increase dental care access, but opposition from the Florida Dental Association has led previous legislation to fail.
6. The authorization of dental therapists is expected to be up for consideration again during Florida’s 2026 legislative session.
