The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) announced in a press release Monday that they have updated requirements for dental health plans.

According to the release, these requirements will provide services to 955,000 Michigan children covered by Medicaid and Michigan’s Healthy Kids Dental Program ahead of a competitive bid process scheduled to be posted in November.

“Dental care remains one of the most unmet health needs for children, particularly in low-income and rural areas,” MDHHS Director Elizabeth Hertel said in the release. “Michigan’s Healthy Kids Dental Program plays a vital role in supporting children’s health, confidence and success in school. As a leader in expanding access to dental care for kids, we’re building on that foundation through the upcoming rebid to better serve Michigan’s youth. We encourage the dental community to take part in this important effort.”

The release states that the rebid will include updates to Michigan’s Medicaid Dental Plan network adequacy and timely access standards. In determining whether these standards are met, MDHHS will only consider providers with whom bidders have executed contracts at the time of the bid submission.

According to MDHHS, the department is releasing its updates to Healthy Kids Dental network adequacy and timely access standards in advance of the rebid to provide time for potential bidders to review their provider networks and execute contracts necessary to meet these standards.

The release states that MDHHS will only consider statewide bids, but reserves the option to select a dental plan serving only Region 10, which includes Macomb, Oakland and Wayne counties.

New contracts are scheduled to begin on Oct. 1, 2026, according to MDHHS.