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ANKENY, Iowa - August 8, 2005 - Delta Dental of Iowa is awarding $50,000 educational loan repayment grants to three Iowa dentists as part of a program to recruit dentists to rural communities and other areas of the state that have a shortage of dentists. In conjunction with this announcement, Delta Dental officials also called on communities to help create economic incentive packages to recruit dentists. The three loan repayment grant recipients are Dr. Christopher Bogue (Carroll, Iowa), Dr. Oluleke Jeboda (Lenox, Iowa), and Dr. Lori Mason (Parkersburg, Iowa.) In addition to the $50,000 loan repayment grant, Dr. Mason also received a matching economic package from the city of Parkersburg. Grant recipients agree to practice in a designated dentist shortage area and devote at least 35 percent of their practice to Medicaid-eligible, elderly, disabled, and other underserved patients over a three-year period. "Loan repayments are one of the most effective ways to recruit dentists to under-served parts of the state, and having a dentist in town makes a big difference to a community's quality of life," said Donn Hutchins, President and CEO of Delta Dental of Iowa. "Delta Dental will work with business leaders and local governments to leverage other resources to recruit dentists." The loan repayment program is a collaborative effort among Delta Dental of Iowa, the Iowa Department of Public Health and the University of Iowa College of Dentistry. Seventy-one of Iowa's 99 counties are currently designated as dentist shortage areas. Delta Dental of Iowa is the largest and most experienced provider of dental benefits in the state. The Iowa company is a member of the Delta Dental Plans Association, a national organization of not-for-profit Delta Dental plans. The national association is the largest dental benefits carrier in the nation providing coverage to more than 45 million people in nearly 76,000 employer groups. |