The Iowa Health and Wellness Plan (IHAWP) is an expansion of health care coverage, allowed as part of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), primarily to single adults with incomes below 133% of the federal poverty level and not otherwise eligible for Medicaid. Dental coverage within the IHAWP is provided through the Dental Wellness Plan (DWP), which is administered by Delta Dental of Iowa (DDIA).
This report is the second provider network adequacy report, and one of several components, in the ongoing evaluation of the DWP program being conducted by the University of Iowa Public Policy Center (UI PPC). It provides the updated information about the dental provider network available to DWP members during the first year of DWP implementation (May 1, 2004 to April 30, 2015). In addition, comparisons are made with the provider network in the traditional Medicaid State Plan.
To evaluate the DWP provider network, two groups of dentists were considered: 1) participating dentists identified administratively by DDLA as members of their provider network and 2) active dentists defined in this report as individuals who submitted at least one claim during the study period. The report assessed two main components of provider network adequacy, namely dentist supply measures and distance measures. Findings from this assessment will be used in conjunction with other components of the UI PPC's evaluation to guide comprehensive review of the DWP program.