Dental Care Education Funding In Budget Proposal Could Be Sign Of Shift In Spending

Health care advocates often push for investment in disease prevention so costly treatments for advanced illness can be avoided.

Anthony Wright of Health Access says the idea has been missing from the budgets in the past five years.

“Because the budget crisis required legislators and the governor to look under every couch cushion for every last quarter to cut, there hasn’t been a lot of opportunity for improvements especially on prevention, not the direct service, but some of the more prevention-oriented activities."

~Anthony Wright, Health Access

This year is the first time a governor has proposed spending on prevention since the economic downturn began in 2008, says Wright.

“It’s good that we’re being more proactive with prevention again, during the budget crisis we made lots of penny wise, pound foolish cuts, cuts of things that have demonstrated positive impacts, even savings in the long run," says Wright.

Wright says he’s glad there are no new cuts to health care in this year’s budget. But he says the Governor’s proposal does continue billions of dollars in cuts included in budgets of recent years.