California is bracing for potential deep cuts to publicly-funded children’s dental care in 2026, and the consequences in the Central Valley will be serious.
California already ranks among the worst states for pediatric dental disease. Even in the face of a statewide deficit, lawmakers shouldn’t balance the books by cutting healthcare from the children who need it most.
Dental issues are the most common reason children miss school. More than 351,000 California children missed at least one day of school in 2022 because of dental problems, adding up to roughly 900,000 lost school days. These losses jeopardize school funding and education access.
I see some of the faces behind these numbers. I was born on Yerba Street in Selma, a rural Central Valley town of about 25,000 where farmworker families help feed California and the rest of the nation. I’ve lived here my entire life. For more than 40 years, I worked as an administrative assistant in Selma Unified schools. I was often the first adult to help a student when they walked into the office. When a child suffered from dental pain or another untreated issue, I worked with our nursing staff to get the child the help they needed, because we knew a small problem could turn into a big one if untreated.
Today, as a board member for Selma Unified, it pains me to see the healthcare situation growing worse in a school district where nearly 93% are considered high need—low-income, English learners, foster youth, or homeless.
For many families, accessing dental care is already difficult. Some must travel long distances or wait months for an appointment. Emergency room visits for dental issues can cost more than $2,000. Preventive dental care protects education and health, yet too often it is out of reach. Only 47.6% of children enrolled in Medi-Cal used their dental benefits in 2022, a sign of how limited access already is in communities like ours.
In my years in the Selma Unified school office, I saw how untreated dental issues could derail student success. Kids stay home when they are in pain. Statewide, these dental-related absences cost school districts an estimated $60 million in 2022. When kids do come to school with a toothache, they can’t concentrate, they don’t eat properly, and their learning suffers.
Many of our students have hardworking, low-income parents who drop them off early and pick them up in the evening. Our schools are often a safe haven for students. They get breakfast, lunch, afternoon snacks, and occasional free dental care, made possible through Medi-Cal dental. This keeps our children healthy and out of emergency rooms, avoiding a strain on families and our healthcare system.
Now the state faces an $18 billion budget deficit, and Medi-Cal Dental could be on the chopping block. Cuts to this program would undo years of progress and deepen inequities in the Central Valley.
We can’t leave the next generation behind because they could not get proper care and missed out on their education. We see the difference when families can get consistent dental care. Medi-Cal Dental is essential to overall student success.
Estella Kessler is the Area 4 Trustee of the Selma Unified School District Board of Trustees and a member of the Central Valley Latino Mayors and Elected Officials Coalition.