According to 2009 data from 88 companies, Medicaid, and Medicare, SKLB1002 approximately 166 million Americans��165,715,478��are covered by some kind of dental benefit. This represents 54% of the U.S. population (a 5.7% decrease in national enrollment from the previous year, National Association of Dental Plans/Delta Dental Plans Association, 2010). Overall, our sample of insurers provide the reimbursements for about 90 million people insured with dental insurance, more than 54% of the total market share for dental insurance allowing for attainment of sufficient saturation of dental insurance carriers. Data Collection Semi-structured interviews were conducted by telephone between April and October 2010. The interview guide is available as Supplementary material online.
All interviews were conducted by one doctoral-level Research Assistant at the University of Chicago. The interviews were guided by a 31-item questionnaire designed to capture information about current reimbursement policies for preventive health services (i.e., diabetes and cholesterol screening, tobacco use screening and treatment and human immunodeficiency virus [HIV] testing). Insurers were also asked open-ended questions about their general attitudes toward the role of dental providers in delivering preventive services, their current reimbursement policies for screening and prevention, and factors that influence reimbursement policies. This paper reports responses to inquiries about provider reimbursement for tobacco-cessation activities. All of the interviews were conducted by telephone, lasted approximately 30 min and were digitally recorded and transcribed.
Transcribed text was then entered into Atlas.ti qualitative data analysis software http://www.atlasti.com/. The study protocol was reviewed and approved by the Institutional Review Boards of the University of Chicago and the University of Miami. Analysis The research team developed, tested, and refined a coding scheme that allowed for systematic identification and conceptual definition of the main themes and subthemes present in the transcripts as well as the relationships among the themes following Strauss��s process of content analysis (Strauss, 1987). The multilevel coding process began with a list of 10 generalized codes that were based upon the main domains of the questionnaire.
These included: (a) insurance company profiles, (b) collaboration with public health departments related to tobacco use treatment, (c) Carfilzomib return on investment (ROI) and cost-effectiveness, (d) insurers�� attitudes toward dentists�� role in treating tobacco use, (e) gaps in dental provider and staff training and knowledge, (f) barriers to offering provider reimbursement, (g) potential benefits of offering coverage and reimbursement, (h) demand for coverage and reimbursement, (i) reimbursement specifics (e.g., rate estimates), and (j) systems integration.