A community dental center dedicated to serving low-income seniors in San Diego opened its doors for business Wednesday downtown.
The Gary and Mary West Senior Dental Center is a nonprofit clinic that was designed to make dental health services affordable to older adults living at or below the poverty level.
It was opened by the West Foundation, created by Rancho Santa Fe residents Gary and Mary West to help seniors live healthy lives.
About 1,000 patients are expected to be treated in the 1,400-square-foot facility in the first year. The dental center is part of the Gary and Mary West Senior Wellness Center at 1525 Fourth Ave.
Ribbon cutting for the West #Senior #DentalCenter! @toniatkins @RonRobertsSD @ScottPetersSD @WestHealth pic.twitter.com/IhlZtO5S31
— Serving Seniors (@ServingSeniors) October 5, 2016
“Poor oral health care is a big problem for seniors in our community and all across the country,” Gary West said. “It’s a hidden and growing epidemic that requires great attention and urgent action.
“We are seeing an incredible need for dental services from our seniors, some of whom haven’t seen a dentist in decades, because they simply couldn’t afford it or couldn’t find a dentist who would see them,” he said. “If we don’t do something to improve access for seniors, more and more older Americans will seek treatment in emergency rooms rather than in dental offices or clinics.”
According to a 2012 San Diego County survey of seniors, the inability to afford dental care was their greatest concern among eight health-related issues.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that only about 60 percent of seniors saw a dentist in the past year. Dental visits are even scarcer among low-income seniors and racial and ethnic minorities.
Medicare, the largest health provider for seniors, does not cover routine dental care, nor is dental coverage included for seniors under the Affordable Care Act. Medicaid coverage of dental care varies by state, but the reimbursement dentists receive is so low that it is unsustainable for many dental practices to provide services to low-income seniors.
— City News Service
