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Delta Dental of Illinois Donates Nearly $30,000 for Oral Health Projects Across Illinois

Submitted by:Delta Dental of Illinois

Categories:Philanthropy & Corporate Contributions

Posted: Oct 30, 2007 – 10:45 AM EST

LISLE, IL - October 30, 2007 - Delta Dental of Illinois (DDIL) has awarded $28,000 to four agencies in three Illinois communities to help promote oral health education and access to care.

The oral health grants are part of Delta Dental of Illinois' public benefit program. Part of the company's mission is to improve the oral health of the communities it serves, so Delta Dental of Illinois supports organizations and projects that help improve oral health access or promote oral health education in the state. The not-for-profit company awards grants three times a year. The new round of grants brings the 2007 award total to $138,000.

The new grants awarded by Delta Dental of Illinois include:

Chicago. A $5,000 grant to the Dental Department of the Free People's Clinic. This clinic has provided access to no-cost primary dental care to the low-income, uninsured population of Chicago's South Side communities for almost 20 years. Free People's Clinic has reached over 15,000 people and will provide access to 1,500 patient visits this year. The clinic will work to identify all patients with chronic periodontal disease and identify treatment plans to help them understand how to manage their chronic oral condition.

DuPage County. An $8,000 grant to the DuPage Community Dental Clinic. This clinic provides access to basic dental care to the residents of DuPage County by offering services to the uninsured that are unavailable elsewhere in DuPage County. DuPage Community Clinic provides oral health exams, oral cancer screenings, x-rays, cleanings, fillings, fluoride treatments and sealants for children and non-surgical extractions. They will provide care to 500 individuals this year.

Champaign-Urbana. A $5,000 grant to the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District. The grant will be used to purchase learning tools to present a dental education program to all kindergarten, second and sixth grade students in Champaign and Urbana, IL. This education will help prepare students for a sealant program visit to each school. This program will reach nearly 3,000 students.

Champaign-Urbana. A $10,000 grant to Central Illinois Dental Education and Services to provide high quality dental care to children living at or below 200% of the poverty level. The program expects to serve 3,100 patients in the coming year. The care will be broad and comprehensive, including oral health education at health fairs, mobile clinic exams, cleanings, fluoride and sealants, restorative work and care from specialists. This year, Central Illinois Dental Education and Services is expanding its mobile school clinic to serve 1,000 grade school children in the county. The organization is now providing care for at-risk participants in a youth intervention program as well as patients served by the Head Start Dental Clinic in Rantoul.

"Part of Delta Dental of Illinois' mission is to continually seek ways for residents of Illinois to have access to quality oral health care and education," said Robert Dennison, D.M.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of Delta Dental of Illinois. "Through our grant program we are able to assist a number of community-focused organizations in their missions to provide beneficial health programs for the entire state."

Delta Dental of Illinois (DDIL) is a not-for-profit dental service corporation specializing in providing comprehensive, easy-to-use and cost-effective benefits to over one million employees and family members in more than 3,200 employee groups throughout Illinois. Based in Lisle, Ill., DDIL offers an array of extensive nationwide network-based managed fee-for-service, PPO and dental HMO plans.

For more information, please contact:

Tim Woods Director of Public Responsibility

Phone: 630-724-4122

For more from this organization:

Delta Dental of Illinois

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CSR Press Release

Delta Dental of Illinois Donates Nearly $30,000 for Oral Health Projects Across Illinois