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Texas prisons often deny dentures to inmates with no teeth
SupersedingHat Retweeted:Chewing is no longer a medical necessity thanks to blended foods, according to a Texas prison policy that denies dentures to all but a few dozen inmates.
Link to tweet
Texas prisons often deny dentures to inmates with no teeth
September 24, 2018
HOUSTON (AP) — Inmates without teeth in Texas are routinely denied dentures because state prison policy says chewing isn’t a medical necessity because they can eat blended food.
Texas prisons’ medical providers approved 71 dentures to a state inmate population of more than 149,000 in 2016, the Houston Chronicle reported. It’s a sharp decline from 15 years ago, when more than 1,000 dental prosthetics were approved.
California, the next-largest prison population, has given nearly six times as many dentures as Texas in the past decade, despite the Lone Star State having nearly 19,000 more inmates than the Golden State. California’s prison system provided more than 4,800 dental prosthetics in 2016, according to the state’s Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation data.
Many Texas inmates are in need because they’re elderly, have a history of drug use or came from impoverished backgrounds with subpar dental care. ... But state policy has strict guidelines saying that inmates can’t get dentures unless they’re underweight or suffering from other medical complications. The policy recommends that inmates with fewer than seven teeth undergo reviews for dentures, but there usually needs to be additional health issues to merit serious consideration for the few dental prosthetics doled out each year.
....
September 24, 2018
HOUSTON (AP) — Inmates without teeth in Texas are routinely denied dentures because state prison policy says chewing isn’t a medical necessity because they can eat blended food.
Texas prisons’ medical providers approved 71 dentures to a state inmate population of more than 149,000 in 2016, the Houston Chronicle reported. It’s a sharp decline from 15 years ago, when more than 1,000 dental prosthetics were approved.
California, the next-largest prison population, has given nearly six times as many dentures as Texas in the past decade, despite the Lone Star State having nearly 19,000 more inmates than the Golden State. California’s prison system provided more than 4,800 dental prosthetics in 2016, according to the state’s Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation data.
Many Texas inmates are in need because they’re elderly, have a history of drug use or came from impoverished backgrounds with subpar dental care. ... But state policy has strict guidelines saying that inmates can’t get dentures unless they’re underweight or suffering from other medical complications. The policy recommends that inmates with fewer than seven teeth undergo reviews for dentures, but there usually needs to be additional health issues to merit serious consideration for the few dental prosthetics doled out each year.
....
