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Committee moves adult dental benefit out of unclaimed‑property trust fund and rejects proposed annual cap
Summary
The Joint Budget Committee authorized staff to draft legislation shifting the adult dental benefit funding source from the Unclaimed Property Trust Fund to general fund, and it rejected a proposed $3,000 annual cap on the adult dental benefit (the cap motion failed 0‑6).
Joe Kurtz, Health Care Policy & Financing staff, briefed the committee on the adult dental benefit and the funding source. The program had been funded from a transfer of unclaimed property trust dollars into the adult dental fund, which creates TABOR‑exempt revenue effects. Several members said that using unclaimed property dollars for an ongoing benefit is not the best use of that revenue.
Representative Byrd and other members urged retention of a generous dental benefit, noting the clinical link between dental health and overall health and the positive effects of last year’s rate increases on provider participation. Members voiced concern about caps that would prevent necessary care; multiple members described the benefit as reaching people with substantial clinical need rather than cosmetic care.
Action: The committee approved a motion authorizing staff to work with OLLS to draft legislation to change the adult dental benefit funding source from the Unclaimed Property Trust Fund to the general fund. The motion passed 6‑0.
Separately the committee considered a motion to impose an annual $3,000 cap on the adult dental benefit; that motion failed on a committee vote of 0‑6 (committee opposed the cap). The committee kept the current uncapped policy and asked staff to prepare implementing language to change the funding source.
