The link between oral and cardiovascular health is well known: https://www.health.harvard.edu/diseases-and-conditions/gum-d...

So, yes, even outside of emergency situations, lots of people die because they cannot/won't see a dentist.

There are a lot of things that impact quality of life that healthcare plans pay for, and must pay for by law. And chances are by the time you get an ER to handle a.dental problem, you are already half dead and they may not be able to save you.

I get the sense that in some ways dentistry and optometry are also kept separate because of how complex they are, and that even something like eye cancer/mouth cancer wouldn't be something a GP would look at. Not sure where they'd draw the line, but I've definitely been to the GP for things I've thought were genuine, general health issues and been sent away because they happened to be in the mouth or somehow related to vision.

Although less common, if you let a tooth infection get bad enough it could potentially lead to other issues and even death.

Is your argument that diseases that you can’t die from shouldn’t be covered by primary medical care?