Community Dental Care

COMMUNITY PROJECT FUNDING/CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED SPENDING - CONSTRUCTION - DIENTES COMMUNITY DENTAL CARE IS THE LARGEST PROVIDER OF DENTAL CARE IN SANTA CRUZ COUNTY, CALIFORNIA. FOR 30 YEARS, DIENTES HAS BEEN PROVIDING HIGH-QUALITY, COMPREHENSIVE CARE TO LOW-INCOME PATIENTS. THE PROJECT AT 1500 CAPITOLA ROAD IN SANTA CRUZ CA WILL ADDRESS THE OVERWHELMING NEED FOR INCREASED ACCESS TO AFFORDABLE DENTAL CARE, AS CURRENTLY TWO OUT OF THREE MEDICAID PATIENTS IN THE COUNTY ARE NOT ACCESSING THE DENTIST. LACK OF CLINICAL CAPACITY AND AVAILABLE APPOINTMENTS IS THE MOST SIGNIFICANT BARRIER. DIENTES WILL BUILD A NEW STATE-OF-THE-ART CLINIC TO PROVIDE COMPREHENSIVE DENTAL CARE AT 1500 CAPITOLA ROAD IN SANTA CRUZ, CA. THE 5,600 SQUARE FOOT CLINIC WILL INCLUDE 11 DENTAL OPERATORIES, INCLUDING A 4-CHAIR PEDIATRIC WING. DIENTES’ CLINIC WILL BE A NEW ADDITION TO THE THREE OTHER FULL-TIME DIENTES CLINICS THAT ARE ALREADY IN OPERATION. THE 1500 CAPITOLA ROAD SITE WILL SERVE 6,000 MORE PATIENTS PER YEAR, HALF OF WHOM WILL BE CHILDREN. $1,050,000 IN CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT FUNDING WILL SUPPORT EQUIPMENT COSTS TO OUTFIT THE NEW 11-CHAIR CLINIC. DIENTES’ CLINIC AT 1500 CAPITOLA ROAD WILL PROVIDE TRULY INTEGRATED CARE AS IT WILL BE PART OF A THRIVING 3.7 ACRE HEALTH AND HOUSING CAMPUS. THE CAMPUS ALSO FEATURES 57 AFFORDABLE HOUSING UNITS AND A 20,000 SQUARE FOOT MEDICAL CLINIC TARGETING UNDERSERVED PATIENTS. THE PROJECT OFFERS MAJOR ECONOMIC IMPACTS, INCLUDING 27 NEW STAFF POSITIONS AT DIENTES.