The IRE and NICAR Database Library worked with WCNC- Charlotte, N.C. to analyze Med- icaid data for a story that aired in December. The Database Li- brary transferred tapes of Med- icaid billing records to Microsoft Access and FoxPro and identi- fied pediatric dentists spending millions of dollars of taxpayer money on unneeded root ca- nals in babies. The analysis found that the main metropoli- tan Medicaid centers in North Carolina treated fewer than 10 percent of the kids on Medicaid in the state, but performed al- most half of the baby root ca- nals.
To view the story, go to www.wcnc.com/news/topstories/ stories/wcnc-121803-al medicaid.b4d99017.html. The series won a Scripps Howard Foundation national journalism award for excellence in electronic media, large market television/ cable. For more information on how IRE and NICAR can help your news organization with data analysis, contact the Database Library at 573-884-7711.