The Senate of Virginia is looking into the viability of a new dental school in the state, according to a Jan. 24 report from Cardinal News.
SB 1478 looks into Virginia Commonwealth University's School of Dentistry potentially expanding its facilities into a state-owned building in southern Virginia.
Sen. Bill Stanley, who introduced the bill, said that there is a lack of dentists in western Virginia.
Mr. Stanley also said that the commonwealth currently owns buildings that could be repurposed into a dental school, such as the Baldwin building located at New College Institute in Martinsville, Va.
The bill was moved to the Senate Finance Committee to assess the cost of the search.
HB 2778, a corresponding bill, is pending in the Virginia House of Delegates, the report added.