Louisiana Medicaid dental for adults: what's covered, how to find a dentist, and how to complain
Last verified: October 26, 2026, from Louisiana Department of Health (LDH) pages, the state's 2026 health plan comparison chart and state law (linked below). This is a guide, not legal advice.
The short version. Many people say Louisiana Medicaid "doesn't cover dental" for adults. That's mostly true of regular Medicaid: for adults 21 and older it covers dentures and the exams and X-rays needed to make them, not cleanings or fillings. But four of the five Healthy Louisiana health plans add $500 to $750 a year for adult exams, cleanings, fillings and extractions. Community health centers (FQHCs) are the most reliable places to use it, and they offer a sliding fee once the money runs out.
Find a clinic in your city
Baton Rouge: Open Health Care Clinic, CareSouth, RKM, Southeast Community Health Systems (Zachary), BRAVO free clinic
New Orleans: DePaul, EXCELth, Health Care for the Homeless, LSU School of Dentistry student clinic
Shreveport: David Raines Community Health Centers, SUSLA dental hygiene clinic, Ochsner LSU free mobile clinic
More Louisiana cities are coming. Until yours is listed, search HRSA's Find a Health Center for federally funded clinics near you and check each one for "dental."
What regular Louisiana Medicaid covers for adults (21+)
Dentures only. An exam and X-rays are covered only when they're part of making a Medicaid-approved denture. Dentures, relines and repairs are covered, with one complete or partial denture per arch every eight years. (LDH Medicaid Services, "Adult Denture Services")
Not eligible for any dental: adults covered only as QMB or SLMB (Medicare savings programs), PACE, Take Charge Plus, or other limited-benefit programs. (LDH)
Fuller coverage for some waiver members: adults in the New Opportunities, Residential Options or Supports Waiver get diagnostic, preventive, restorative, root canal, gum, oral surgery and other dental services through their Medicaid dental plan. (LDH)
Kids and young adults through age 20 get full dental coverage under EPSDT, so the cutoff at 21 is when most people lose it. (LDH)
New law: Act 629 of 2026 (HB 222) requires Louisiana Medicaid to cover a dental procedure that's medically necessary to clear you for another Medicaid-covered procedure, such as surgery. LDH still has to put it into its rules, so ask your plan whether it's in effect. (Act 629 text)
The adult dental extra in each Healthy Louisiana plan
Your health plan, not your dental plan, pays for adult cleanings and fillings, as an extra benefit. From the state's 2026 "Compare Health Plans" chart (PDF):
Plan extras change every year. If you need dental work and your plan has no adult dental extra, you can change plans through Healthy Louisiana (1-855-229-6848) during open enrollment, or ask whether you qualify to switch for cause.
How to find a dentist that takes adult Medicaid
Know your two plans. You have a health plan (one of the five above) and a dental plan, either MCNA Dental (1-855-702-6262) or DentaQuest (1-800-685-0143). Not sure which? Call Healthy Louisiana at 1-855-229-6848. (LDH)
For dentures, call your dental plan and ask for an in-network dentist who makes adult Medicaid dentures.
For cleanings, fillings and pulled teeth, call your health plan and ask which dentists bill its adult dental extra near you. With AmeriHealth Caritas, it has to be a community health center (FQHC).
Start with community health centers. FQHCs see Medicaid patients and must offer a sliding fee based on income, so you can keep going after your plan's yearly limit runs out. Our city pages list them; HRSA's map covers the rest of the state.
Use a dental school for lower-cost care: the LSU School of Dentistry student clinics in New Orleans.
Ask for a ride. AmeriHealth Caritas, Healthy Blue and Humana list rides to adult dental appointments as an extra (chart PDF above). That matters if, like many rural members, the nearest dentist is hours away.
How to complain or appeal
Denied a dental service? You can appeal, first to your dental plan and then to the state. (LDH Dental Services)
Dental plan won't help you find a dentist, or another dental problem? Email Louisiana Medicaid at MedicaidDental@la.gov. LDH says it monitors complaints about MCNA and DentaQuest and "the appropriate staff will address any issues or concerns." (LDH Dental Services)
Problem with your health plan (for example, it won't honor its adult dental extra)? Call your plan's member services first, then the Healthy Louisiana line at 1-855-229-6848 or email healthy@la.gov. (LDH managed care complaints sheet, 2024)
Write down the date, who you talked to and what they said. It makes a complaint much easier to act on.
In pain right now? Call a community health center on our city pages and say it's urgent; some, like Open Health Care Clinic in Baton Rouge and DePaul in New Orleans, take dental walk-ins. A hospital emergency room can treat a spreading infection or facial swelling, though usually not fix the tooth.