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Overview
Mission
Delta Dental is dedicated to improving the long-term oral health of low-income children by facilitating access to dental care and oral health education via a combination of advocacy, financial resources and partnerships with like-minded organizations across Virginia.
In support of this mission, Delta Dental's Smart Smiles® is an innovative program that provides desperately needed dental care to Virginia's children who do not have dental insurance or who qualify for Medicaid/FAMIS/Smiles for Children. In addition, Smart Smiles participants receive dental health education and hygiene instruction as part of the experience.
Smart Smiles programs are currently operating in Southwest Virginia, Richmond, the Virginia Peninsula, Charlottesville and Martinsville with more than 500 children enrolled in the program. Additional programs are being launched throughout the state.
Once a year, on Give Kids A Smile® Day, the program also serves qualifying youth served by partner organizations.
Funding
Delta Dental of Virginia provided the funding for the development and statewide launch of Smart Smiles and employs a Public Benefits Coordinator to manage the program. Local Smart Smiles programs in each community rely on the generous donations of individuals, corporations and foundations for operational funding and staffing.
History
In 2001, the flash of a brilliant new smile from a member of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Roanoke Valley ignited Delta Dental's Smart Smiles®.
The remarkable success and measurable results of the pilot program in the Roanoke Valley initiated the program's statewide rollout in 2003 and began a wave of beaming smiles on the faces of some of Virginia’s most at-risk children.
Today, Smart Smiles programs are operating in Southwest Virginia, Richmond, the Virginia Peninsula, Charlottesville and Martinsville with more than 500 children from these Boys and Girls Clubs currently enrolled in the program.
Program Results
With Delta Dental's Smart Smiles, success is measured by results. In addition to giving children a healthy smile, the program yields long-term health results, as essential dental care services to young people heighten the probability they will avoid severe health complications later in life.
The results speak for themselves:
- 6,000+ dental visits since 2001 (often the first visit ever for the child)
- 5,400+ Give Kids A Smile® Day dental visits (in Richmond alone) since 2004; Smart Smiles is a proud supporter of this program sponsored by the American Dental Association
- 52,000+ children educated in oral health and hygiene instruction since 2001
- 68% reduction in cavities at the six-month checkup from the first exam
- 84% improvement in oral hygiene knowledge levels pre- to post-test