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Dental decay is the number one chronic disease in childhood. It is the recommendation of both The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry and The American Academy of Pediatrics that children begin going to the dentist by the age of one year.

Previously, it was thought to wait until children were three years of age to visit a dentist. However, by this age, many children already have multiple decayed teeth, often times unrestorable requiring extraction.

The overall health implications and the costs involved in treating complex cases such as this are tremendous.

The main goal of the age one dental visit is prevention. Many food and drink habits that start early can be altered to promote both dental and overall health. There are many pediatric dentists in the Washington DC and Baltimore area.

If you are active duty and your child is covered under the TRICARE Dental Program (TDP) with United Concordia Companies, Inc, (UCCI) contact them at 1-800-332-0366 for a list of pediatric dental providers.

If you are active duty and your child is not covered under this plan, feel free to contact the pediatric dentist at Walter Reed at (202) 782-6810, to inquire about space available care. Moreover, if you and your family members are going to permanent change station in the near future outside the continental United States (OCONUS), it is important that you keep your enrollment in the TDP until you are actually at the OCONUS duty location and can see what dental services are provided to family members.

Because military dental facilities are focused on dental readiness of Soldiers, space available care for family members will vary widely by locations overseas. This is especially important for non-command sponsored family members as services for them may be very limited, and the amount of out of pocket expense may be very high if they are not enrolled in TDP.

The TDP gives you a safety net for your family while you are stationed overseas. Whether at your new duty station overseas or while your family is traveling it ensures dental coverage in both elective and emergency situations.

For more information on the TDP, please contact UCCI or your local military dental clinic.