Fishersville, Va.-based Augusta Regional Dental Clinic is hiring more dentists, hygienists and assistants to meet an expected 40 percent patient volume increase, reports WVIR-TV.
The Augusta Regional Dental Clinic serves people across Augusta County who don't have insurance but instead have Medicaid benefits.
Starting July 1, Virginia expanded its Medicaid plan to cover cleanings, fillings, root canals and crowns. Under the new policy, Medicaid recipients also have access to X-rays, exams, dentures, gum-related treatment and oral surgeries. Braces and bridges aren't included in coverage.
"By allowing Medicaid enrollees to come for their cleanup, regular checkup, chat with your hygienist … we're going to prevent so many disease[s,] pain, avoidable trips to the ER, lost school hours, lost job hours," Sophie Parson, executive director of Augusta Regional Dental Clinic, told WVIR-TV. "This is tremendous."
"The colleagues are on the phone constantly trying to take new patients," Ms. Parson said. "We've accepted more than 100 in the last quarter, and it's just now intensifying."