In 2015-2016, a new survey of Nebraska 3rd Grade Students was conducted in 58 urban and rural school sties involving more than 3,000 children. The results showed 63.9% of these children had caries experience. This is higher than the national average of 52%. Decay experience is even higher for rural children (81.4%) than urban children (54.6%). Over half of Nebraska is considered a general dentist shortage area and rural children have higher dental disease rates and  less access to preventive dental services than their urban counterparts. 

Caries = Dental Decay (or cavities)
Caries Experience = having a history of treated or untreated dental decay
Preventive Dental Services = These include dental screenings, tooth cleanings, fluoride applications, and dental sealants and together they can greatly reduce dental disease. 

**Note: Nebraska specific data cannot be directly compared to National HP2020 data for this objective. National HP2020 data for this objective collects for youth ages 6-9, whereas the Nebraska data comes from the basic screening survey of 3rd grade students in 2005. This same survey is currently being conducted statewide and will capture 2015-2017 data.

National HP 2020 (OH-1) Comparison:

2011-2012: 57.7%

2020 National Target for this objective: 49.0%

Source: National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), CDC/NCHS