Delaware meets five of the eight benchmarks aimed at improving children's dental health, three more than it met in 2010. This large improvement is due to the state surpassing the benchmark for water fluoridation, and also reinstating its school-linked sealant program during the 2009-2010 school year. The program links with Delaware's dental public health clinical system to transport children from schools to clinics.
The state has also achieved the benchmark for access to care for children through Medicaid; in 2009, over 41 percent of enrolled children received dental care.
1. Note that no calculation was performed for Delaware, since it has no set fee schedule, and simply pays 80 percent of each dentist's billed charges.