Chomping at the bit

According to a recent survey by the Center for Disease Control, 36 percent of Hoosiers over the age of 65 have lost all of their original teeth. This is 150 percent more than the national average, yet IU refuses to provide its graduate employees with a dental plan. Tooth loss might be hard to imagine, but it's even harder to believe that I might need a straw to drink my meals down when I get older because I won't have teeth strong enough to chew my lasagna or to eat a sandwich. Maybe dentures will be the new trend when I lose my teeth. Maybe a smile with crusty pink gums instead of bright white teeth will look great. I brush my teeth at least twice a day, floss almost every night before bed, eat sensibly, yet sometimes that just doesn't cut it. Just ask my dentist, who last month cleaned my teeth, took X-rays (it had been three years), and filled two cavities, all to the tune of $350. That's as much as nearly half of my monthly salary, a full month's rent, or all my bills, groceries, and car insurance for January. \nUnfortunately, this is not only about me. This is about the more than 3,000 dedicated graduate employees and graduate students who work at IU to help make it one of the premier learning institutions in the nation. We take pride in being a top institution in numerous academic fields and competitive athletic events in addition to conducting important research on various topics. Yet, after completing its own research, the Graduate Employee Organization found IU to be at the bottom of nearly every comparison with other public Big Ten universities when looking at dental care coverage and prevention programs. The fact is IU is one of the only Big Ten schools not to provide some form of dental coverage for its graduate employees and graduate students. \nAccording to the American Dental Association, "Dental health is a key factor to preserving one's general health. Employers and other plan sponsors offer dental benefits for a variety of reasons. Offering a dental benefits plan makes economic sense. A quality dental benefits plan can aid in the recruitment and retention of employees." The ADA goes on to say, "Most medical needs and treatments are unpredictable, catastrophic, high cost and an insurable risk. Most dental needs and treatments are predictable, non-catastrophic, low cost and low risk." \nProviding dental coverage and preventive care programs for IU graduate employees makes sense. In order to attract and retain the best graduate employees and graduate students in the country, IU has an obligation to provide the best dental and medical care it can.\nChomp chomp, happy brushing!